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PERSONAL SOUL - WINNING 






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PERSONAL 
SOUL-WINNING 



BY WILLIAM EVANS, D. D. 

Director of the Bitole Coiirse, Tlie Moody Bible Institute 

of Chicago. Author of "The Book of Books," 

"How to Memorize," "Outline Studies 

of Old and New Testament 

Books," etc. 



CHICAGO 

THE BIBLE INSTITUTE COLPORTAQE ASSOCIATION 

826 LA SALLE AVENUE 



ir ^^lOA 






Copyright, 1910, by 
WHiiiiAM Evans 



iCI.A275525 



■<♦■■ 
* 







To 
Rev. R. A. Torrey, D. D. 

under whose efficient instruction the writer sat 

for two years and from whom his first lessons 

in Personal Soul-Winnine were learned, 

this book is dedicated. 



FOREWORD. 

No higher honor could be conferred upon the Chris- 
tian, and no greater privilege be given the believer in 
Jesus Christ than to be associated with Him in the 
great and blessed work of bringing a lost world to 
the knowledge of the truth. ^'Behold, what manner of 
love the Father hath bestowed upon us," to put us into 
so great a ministry. 

It is not possible for every Christian to be a preacher 
or a teacher in spiritual things, for these are special 
gifts bestowed by the Holy Spirit upon certain believ- 
ers, even as it hath pleased Him. But there is no Chris- 
tian, however humble or insignificant he may feel him- 
self, or others esteem him to be, who is not appointed 
by the Spirit to be a winner of souls. One often won- 
ders whether the honor conferred upon the believer of 
being a soul-winner is not greater than the conferred 
gift of teaching or preaching; and whether or not at 
the last day, when the rewards are distributed, the per- 
sonal soul-winner will receive as great, if not a greater 
reward than many a teacher or preacher. Daniel 12 :3 
(R. V.) is filled with glorious comfort for the man who ^' 
seeks to turn sinners to God : ^^\nd they that be teach- 
ers shall shine as the brightness of the firmam^ent ; and 
they that turn many to righteousness, as the stars for- 
ever and ever." 

That the individual Christian may be prompted, en- 
couraged, and equipped to do this kind of Personal 
Soul- Winning work, is the purpose of this book. Its 
popular or conversational style of address will, it is 
hoped, enable the book to more thoroughly accomplish 
its purpose. The leading Scripture references have 

7 



8 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

been made to stand out distinctly from the main body 
of type in order that they may be easily located. 

The writer, who is the instructor on the subject of 
which this book treats, in the Moody Bible Institute 
of Chicago, has prepared this work not more for the 
general public than for the young men and women who 
regularly take the work in his classes. Many of the 
students have expressed a wish to have these lectures in 
a printed and a completed form, so that when out in 
the field they may have opportunity to refer to and 
make use of them in the work of soul-winning, to 
which they have dedicated their lives. 

Being a graduate of the Institute, the writer had 
the privilege of listening to similar instruction from 
Rev. R. A. Torrey, D.D., whom he highly honored as 
a teacher, and who has read the proof sheets of this 
book with commendation. The nature of the theme, 
to say nothing of the impression made by such a 
teacher on his pupil, may show in this book a cer- 
tain general similarity in manner of presentation. The 
great indebtedness of the writer to Dr. Torrey is 
hereby gratefully expressed. 

William Evans. 



CONTENTS. 



Chapter I. — The Value of Peesonal Effort in Soul- 
Winning 13 

Individual and church, at work — Personal dealing counts 
most — Examples — Secret of growth. 

Chapter II.-t-Elements of Success in Personal Soul- 
Winning 21 

Tact — Contact — Ability — Value of opportunities — Fundar 
mental convictions — Faith — Patience. 

Chapter III. — The Personal Worker Himself — His 

Qualifications - - - - - - - - 33 

Must be a Christian — Spirit-filled — Prayerful — ^A lover of 
Souls — Confidence in God and His Word. 

Chapter IV. — Instructions to the Soul-Winner - - 43 
Who can do it — ^When, where — How it may be done — Open- 
ing the case — Bringing about decisions — How to memorize 
Scripture. 

Chapter V. — The Uninterested and Unconcerned - -^'^ 53 
Arousing interest in divine things — ^Various lines of appeal: 
Sin, love, hope, fear. 

Chapter VI. — Those Who Are Interested and Con- 
cerned, But Ignorant of the Way of Life - - 65 
How to become a Christian — Repentance — Faith — Confessing 
Christ — Christ's Kingship. 

Chapter VII. — Those Who Are Interested and Anxious, 

BUT Perplexed 73 

Too great a sinner — No feeling — Cannot find Christ — Cannot 
give up evil — Hurt my business — Cannot forgive enemies — 
Self-improvement. 

Chapter VIII. — The Self-Righteous - - - - 87 
Who they are — How to meet them— What God requires — Ex- 
amples of moral men. 

Chapter IX. — The Backslider 93 

The penitent — God's willingness — How to come back. The 
impenitent — Sad condition — Fatal results. 

9 



10 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

Chapter X. — The Feaeful aisd Despahiing - - - 99 
The case stated — Fear of ridicule — Loss of friends — Fear of 
persecution — How to hold out — Encouraging promises — Afraid 
will not be received — Tried before and failed — How to suc- 
ceed — Sinned away the day of grace — Unpardonable sin — Too 
late to become a Christian. 

Chapter XL — The Peocrastinatoe - - - - 115 

Danger of postponing salvation — Business first — ^Wait till I 
get older — Expect to become a Christian before I die — Sudden 
death. 

Chaptee XII. — The Fault-Finding 123 

With God — Unjust to condemn man — Has not clearly revealed 
himself to man — The Bible foolish, contradictory and im- 
pure — A mere human book — Hypocrites in the church — Chris- 
tians inconsistent — The Christian life too hard and exacting — 
Finding fault with the plan of salvation. 

Chapter XIIL — Those Who Aee Misled by Ebroneous 

Views of the Truth 137 

Roman Catholic — Unitarian — Universalist — Seventh-Day Ad- 
ventist — Spiritualist — Jew — Christian Scientist — Millennial 
Dawnism. 

Chaptee XIV. — The Obstinate 179 

Don't talk to me — Want to have my own way — Have a good 
time in this world — Don't care for world to come. 

Chapter XV. — The Skeptic 185 

Trifling — Cause of skepticism — Consequences. Serious-minded 
— The way out — Objections — Doubt existence of God — Future 
retribution — Inspiration of the Bible — Deity of Christ. 



THE VALUE OF PERSONAL 

EFFOET IN SOUL -WINNING 



CHAPTER L 

THE VALUE OF PERSONAL EFFORT IN SOUL- 
WINNING. 

EVERY Christian should consider it the highest 
honor, and the greatest privilege to assist in 
the growth of the kingdom of God, by personal effort 
in individual soul-winning. He should realize, too, that 
it is not only his privilege to thus work for God, but 
that a most solemn responsibility rests upon him to 
do so. The true Christian, having found Christ to be 
precious to his own soul, desires, or at once seeks, as 
did Andrew and Philip of old, to get someone else 
to taste and see that the Lord is good. 

And what is true of the individual Christian should 
be true of the whole Church. What is the true position 
of the Church according to the teachings of Christ? 
Is she not to be the salt of the earth and the light of 
the world? Should she not be as the woman seeking 
the lost coin, the shepherd seeking the straying sheep, 
and the father on the constant lookout for the way- 
ward son? That church, the members of which are 
not interested in, and putting forth personal effort in 
behalf of, a lost world, has in truth forfeited its creden- 
tials and its right to exist. In seeking to save its own 
soul, it has really lost it 

An anonymous clipping contains the following sug- 
gestive remarks along this particular line: 

"What man of you, having an hundred sheep, if 
he lose one of them, doth not leave the ninety and nine 
in the wilderness, and go after that which is lost, until 
he find it?' That is to say, the alpha and omega of 

13 



I 



14 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

Christianity is soul-winning, and every letter between 
the first and last should be permeated by the spirit 
which seeks the lost. 

"It is not enough to be evangelical. We must be 
evangelistic. The evangelical church is a reservoir of 
pure water without a pipe running anywhere. If you 
will take the trouble to go to it and climb the embank- 
ment, you will get a good drink. The evangelistic 
church is a reservoir of pure water with a pipe to 
every heart in the community, and every nation in the 
world. Evangelical may mean truth on ice; evan- 
gelistic means truth on fire. Evangelical may be 
bomb-proof for defense; evangelistic means an army 
on the march with every face towards the enemy. Evan- 
gelical sings, 'Hold the fort, for I am coming'; evan- 
gelistic sings, 'Storm the fort, for God is leading.' 
The need of the Church is not evangelicalism as a thing 
to fight for, but evangelism as a force to fight with. 
The evangelical creed merely held and defended be- 
comes a fossil, only a thing of interest. 

"Several miles above Milton, Pa., when the ice was 
breaking up, a farmer got into one of his boats, pur- 
posing to pull it out of the river. A floating mass of 
ice struck it, breaking it loose from the bank, and 
carrying it and him out into the current. A neighbor, 
seeing the danger, mounted a horse and with all speed 
rode down to Milton. The people of the town gathered 
all the ropes they could secure, went out on the bridge, 
and suspended a line of dangling ropes from the bridge 
across the river. They could not tell at just what 
point the boat with the farmer would pass under, so 
they put a rope down every tAvo or three feet clear 
across. By and by the farmer was seen, wet and cold, 
standing in the boat half full of water, drifting down 
the rapid current. When he saw the ropes dangling 
within reach, he seized the nearest one, was drawn up 



TEE VALUE OF PERSONAL EFFORT 15 

and saved. Now, one rope might not have answered 
the purpose. The pastor hangs the rope of salvation 
from the pulpit, and sinners present do not seem to 
get near it ; but if the business men will hang out ropes, 
and you young men and women, mothers and wives, 
hang out ropes, sinners will certainly be saved." 

Greater stress is here laid upon winning men to 
Christ by individual effort rather than upon any 
other method of accomplishing the same purpose, re- 
vivals, for example. Not that we do not believe in 
revivals, for how can one be a believer in the Bible 
and not believe in revivals? But personal soul-win- 
ning is much greater than revivalism. Indeed, is not 
the purpose and end of a true revival to make the^ 
individual Christian worker more interested in souls? 
A revival that does not accomplish this end is not a 
success. Both evangelist and pastor agree on this. 

Revivalism is fishing with a great net ; personal soul- / 
winning is fishing with a single hook. Both are right i(y^ 
but all Christians cannot handle the big net, while 
all can use the single hook. All Christians are to be 
fishers of men. That form of Christian activity, there- 
fore, is most important, which excludes none from 
participation in it. 

Much is said today about winning "the crowds" for 
Jesus Christ. Every such effort is to be encouraged; 
but we must not forget that men can enter into the 
kingdom of God only as individuals. Religion em- 
phasizes personality. In what is a man better than a 
sheep? In this: that he is a personality, and must 
be dealt with as such, personally, individually. It 
is for this reason that the intelligent evangelist lays 
such emphasis upon a good corps of personal workers 
who shall deal with the crowds who come forward 
under the impulse of the invitation, individually and 
personally. Indeed, we do not consider that converts- 



•if 'V 



16 PEBSOXAL souL-wiyyixa 

have been dealt with, properly until they have been 
dealt with personally. 

Keligion emphasizes personality. Recently a photo- 
graph was left in my office. It was that of a converted 
convict. It had no name on it. only a number. Per- 
sonality is lost in jail ; it is a number that is there 
recognized. It is a number that paces up and down the 
cell, a number that walks out to work in the yards, 
a number that sits down to eat. a number that takes 
sick and dies, and a number that is buried in the pot- 
ter's field. Personality, not numbers, counts in the 
kingdom of God; the Church is made up of that in- 
numerable host which no man can number, but who 
carry upon their foreheads the name of Him whose 
they are and whom they serve. All talk about a social 
salvation, and a sweeping of men into the kingdom 
by crowds, is to be received with some apprehension, 
to say the least 

Jesus Cheist OrB. Example. 

^ Jestis Christ won most, if not all. of His followers 

.^ 5 by personal effort. Do you recall a single instance of 

what we. in this day. would call a great revival taking 
place during Christ's ministry? He enlisted Matthew 
at the toll-booth, and Peter. James and John at their 
nets, by personal invitation ; ''Come, follow me !" One 
by one, man by man ; that is how Christ's cause grew. 

What is the great lesson taught in the first chapter 
of John, the chapter commonly called the ^'Eureka" 
or ^'I have found" chapter? Is it not that the Church 
of Christ grew and is to grow by personal effort? 
Does not the Holy Spirit set forth at the beginning 
of the Christian dispensation the divine method of 
extending Christianity, the law of the kingdom's 
growth, namely, the finding of one disciple by another? 

The supreme business of the Christian is to indi- 
vidualize the Gospel. >'o distinction, such as clergy 



I*"" 



TEE VALUE OF PERSONAL EFFORT 17 

and laity, is here recognized. As followers of Christ 
we are all to be personal soul-winners. Every Chris- 
tian layman is "ordained" to go and bring forth fruit, 
and is a ^'minister" in so far as every man who has 
received a gift — and every Christian has received one — 
is called upon to minister therewith (John 15:16; 
1 Peter 4:10, 11). 

The Apostles^ Example. 

How personal soul-winning is emphasized in the 
Acts of the Apostles! Pentecost is passed over with 
comparatively small mention ; but the Church of Jesus 
Christ going out as individual personal workers — John 
here, Peter there, Philip yonder, the ordinary Christian 
layman going from house to house, seeking to extend 
the kingdom of the Christ — this is given in detail, and 
to its narration is devoted much space. 

The Testimony of Two Pastors. 

The church at Colosse began not with a great revival 
under Paul, but as the result of the faithful personal 
work of one man, Epaphras. The church at Rome was 
undoubtedly founded in the same way. Pastors ac- 
knowledge that the best additions to their churches 
are those won to Christ by personal effort. Dr. 
Hughes, recently chosen bishop in the Methodist Epis- 
copal Church, says, that in a revival in his church cov- 
ering two years, there were 48 converts, 11 men and 
37 women; but that, as a result of personal work dur- 
ing the same period, there were 75 converts, 40 men 
and 35 women. Is there not a lesson for us to learn 
from this experience, not only as to numbers, but as 
to sex? Here is the solution of the pastor's problem, 
"How to reach the men." Dr. J. O. Peck is reported 
to have said, that if he had the certainty that he was to 
live only ten years, and as a condition of gaining 
heaven at the end thereof, he had to win a thousand 



18 PERSONAL SOUL-WINXING 

or ten thousand souls for Christ, and he was given 
his choice of winning them either by preaching sermons 
or by individual effort, he would choose the latter 
method every time. 

A Great Way to Grow. 

Have you ever thought what would happen in the 
Church of Christ if each of its preachers would win 
one soul a month for a year? The Methodist denomi- 
nation would count 502,710 additions to its member- 
ship in that one year. The net gains of this de- 
nomination for 1907 were 102,000. If every Baptist 
preacher did the same, 459,348 additions would be made 
to their churches, whereas in 1907 the total additions 
were 103,358. If every church member would win just 
one soul in a year, the kingdom of Christ would be 
increased by 1,600,000 members.* The grand total of 
additions to the entire church of all denominations 
and sects in the United States in 1907 was 627,546. 
It took five preachers and 33 members during 1907 to 
bring one new member into the church, including all 
the infants that are counted members by baptism. 
And who knows how many of the adults admitted had 
really accepted Christ as their personal Saviour? 



*The above figures are based upon recent statistics gathered by 
Dr. H. K. Carroll. 



ELEMENTS OF SUCCESS IN 

PEESONAL SOUL -WINNING 



CHAPTER n. 

ELEMENTS OF SUCCESS IN PERSONAL SOUL- 

WINNING. 

A MONG the elements of success in personal work 
-Z^JL may be mentioned : 

1. Tact. 

1^ "Tact/' according to the dictionary, "is a quick or 
intuitive appreciation of what is proper, fitting or 
right ; the mental ability of doing and saying the right 
thing at the right time so as not to unjustly offend 

, or anger." 

\y In other words, tact is nothing more or less than 
Jj\ skill and facility in dealing with men. Tact has been 
called the life of the five senses : it is the open eye, the 
quick ear, the judging taste, the keen smell, the lively 
touch. Tact knows what to do and when and how 
to do it. 

Christ manifested great tact in His reply to the un- 
reasonable question of the Pharisees, when He called 
for a coin, and in reply to the captious question of 
His enemies, said : "Render to Caesar the things which 
are Caesar's; and to God the things which are God's." 
Paul showed tact when, brought before the tribunal, 
perceiving that his audience was divided on the ques- 
tion of the resurrection of the dead — the Pharisees 
believing it, and the Sadducees disbelieving it — he cried 
out: "For the hope of the resurrection of the dead 
am I called in question." His tact won the day; for 
we read, that, immediately following this appeal, there 
"arose a dissension between the Pharisees and the Sad- 
ducees: and the multitude was divided." In writing 

21 



y 



•n 



22 PERSOXAL SOUL-WIXXIXG 

to the Corinthians, Paul says: ''Being crafty, I 
caught YOU with guile/' 

A Salvation Army lass was once accosted by a young 
dude whom she asked to buy a War Cry for five cents. 
''Give me ten cents* worth of prayer," said the foolish 
youth. Instantly the lassie knelt down before the 
young man and the young ladies who were accompany 
4^ ing him, and prayed for the fellow. And so earnestly 
did the lassie pray that that young man sought her a 
few days later and asked her to point him to a Saviour 
who could save him from his waywardness and sin. 
That young lassie had tact. 

Philip the evangelist had tact, and manifested it in 
dealing with the Ethiopian eunuch (Acts S). Instead 
of blurting out, as many Christian workers do today: 
"Are you a Christian? if not, you are going to hell; 
repent, or you will be damned," he approached him 
with the question, quite natural to a man who was 
engaged in reading, *'Understandest thou what thou 
readest?" The result of such tactful dealing was that 
the eunuch invited the evangelist to ride with him and 
explain to him the way of salvation. Ultimately the 
man found Jesus Christ as his Saviour, and went on 
his way rejoicing. Many an untactful man would have 
spoiled that magnificent opportunity. 
'" Fishermen teach us the value of tact in their choice 
and use of various kinds of bait, and in the different 
methods pursued in catching different kinds of fish. 

Tact supplies the lack of many talents; indeed, the 
lack of it is oftentimes fatal. A little tact and wise 
management very often gain a point which could be 
gained in no other way. 

It is fortunate for the Christian worker that this 
element of success in personal work is at his command. 
It comes from God in answer to prayer. If a man 
does not have it by nature, he may have it by grace. 



ELEMENTS OF SUCCESS 23 

God will give it in answer to prayer. ^^If any of you 
lack wisdom [tact], let him ask of God, that giveth 
to all men [and women alike] liberally, and upbraideth 
not; and it shall be given him" (Jas. 1:5). Compare 
1 John 2 :29 ; Acts 13 :9, 10. 

2. Contact. 

K Contact is defined as the coming together of two 
bodies in space. It means, in personal work, the com- 
ing into touch with your man. Contact is button-hol- 
ing, "tackling" your man. A man may have all the 
tact in the world, but it will be useless unless he gets 
into contact with men. Contact is tact put into prac- 
tice. 

Samson had strength sufficient to pull down the 
great temple of the Philistines; but it was of no avail 
until he was put into contact with, and his arms en- 
closed, the mighty pillars which supported the mas- 
sive temple. Of what use is all our knowledge of 
methods, if we do not go after men and deal with them 
individually? 

I- Of what use is the sword if there is no battle to be 
fought, no cause to be defended, no victory to be won? 
You may have the finest fishing tackle that money 
can buy in the cupboard in your home, but it will not 
catch fish for you until you bring it into contact with 
the fish in the water. So a Christian worker may have 
fine tackle for spiritual fishing — a knowledge of the 
habits of men and a good knowledge of the various 
Scripture passages to use in catching them — and yet 
be utterly futile and useless as a personal worker un- 
less he comes into contact with men. 
i. There are two things to remember about contact: 
grgt. we must have contact with God ; second, we must 
have contact with men. We must be^ heart-foremost 
with God if we would be head-foremost with men. 
Jacob is a good illustration of this. First, he wrestled 



24; PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

with God, and then, as a result, he had power with 
men. Witness his victory over his brother Esau. 

3, Ability. 

^ Ability is defined as the power of bringing things to 
pass. Ability was characteristic of the life of Jesus. 
Again and again do we find the words, "And it came 
to pass." 

y (a) We need ability to read a/nd understand men, 

Jesus knew men. We are told in John 2 :24, 25, that 
"Jesus knew all men ... he knew what was in man.'^ 
Just as the successful fisherman must understand the 
habits of fish, so must the successful personal worker 
understand the ways, reasonings, disputings, and 
methods of men. Different temperaments need to be 
dealt with in different ways. 

(h) We need ability in the handling of the Bible. 
^ We should be able to handle our Bibles and turn to 
the desired location as expertly as the book agent 
turns to his prospectus and the life insurance man 
to his book of tables. 

v^ Philip the evangelist would have lost a magnificent 
opportunity if he had not been able to find the place 
in the Scriptures where it is written. We must be 
experts in the handling of the Word of God. Some- 
times to hesitate means to lose the case you are deal- 
ing with. See how quickly Jesus turned to just the 
place he wanted when he was called upon to read in 
the synagogue at Nazareth (Luke 4 :17) : "And when 
he had opened the book, he found the place where it 
was written." Ability to find the place where it is 
written inspires confidence in the inquirer, whereas 
hesitancy is a barrier to effective dealing. We need 
ability in handling the Bible, for three reasons : 

First: To show men from the Word of God that 
they are sinners. 



ELEMENTS OF SUCCESS 25 

It need hardly be said that all men do not concede 
that they are sinners. In order to convince them of 
this fact, we need words that are divine. No words 
of ours can produce conviction of sin : God's Word 
alone can do that. It is the "sword of the Spirit" 
alone that can prevail in such a conflict as this, and 
the sword of the Spirit is the Word of God (Eph. 
6:17). 

Secondly: To point men who are convicted of sin 
to Jesus Christ, who is the Sin-bearer. 

This can only be done by directing the thought 
of the inquirer to those passages of Scripture 
which set forth the death of Christ as the propitia- 
tion for the sins of men. No words of ours can give 
peace and assurance to souls that are burdened with 
the knowledge and guilt of sin. God must speak if 
men are to hear the words, "Go in peace; thy sins are 
forgiven thee." 

Thirdly: We must use the Bible in order to estab- 
lish men in the faith, and to direct them to the means 
of growth in the Christian life. 

It is not enough that we get men saved. We must 
show them how to make a success of the Christian life ; 
we must show them how to "grow in grace, and in the 
knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ" (2 
Peter 3:18). 

(c) AgairVy we need ability to 'bring about decisions. 

Many Christian workers find themselves unable to 
bring the inquirer beyond a certain point. They can 
bring the inquirer to acknowledge his sinfulness and 
express his desire to accept Christ as his Saviour, but 
cannot get him to really DO IT; and so the earnest, 
anxious inquirer goes away unsaved, simply because 
the personal worker did not have the ability to bring 
things to a final issue. Anyone who has had any ex- 
perience whatever in fishing knows that there is a 



26 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

'world of difference in having a fisli nibble at your 
hook and in catching it, and landing it right in the 
' boat. To have a fish nibble at your hook is a good 
thing; to be able to lift it out of the water is a better 
thing; to land it right in the boat is the best thing of 
it all. So it is in spiritual fishing — in the catching of 
men. It is good to find an inquirer; it is better to 
be able to show him the way of life; it is best to be 
able to get him to definitely accept Christ as his per- 
sonal Saviour. 

/? Ability, as all the other essential factors of success- 
ful soul-winning, is something within the reach of the 
humblest child of God. It, too, is a gift from God, 
and comes in answer to prayer; We are told in 1 
Peter 4:11 that there is such a thing as ''the ability 
which God giveth." Then let us ask God in prayer 
to grant us this power so that we shall be able to bring 
things to pass for Him. 

y^. The appreciation of opportunities. (Epli* 5:16.) 

An opportunity is denned as a time with favoring 
or propitious circumstances ; a favorable chance. 

The personal worker must be an opportunist; he 
must believe in opportunism. The buying up of oppor- 
tunities for Christ is not to be understood as an effort 
to save hours which we might be tempted to waste from 
idleness, but the effort to so control our time that we 
shall not allow any selfish motive, any cowardly 
timidity, to stand in the way of our doing good. The 
Christian worker must emulate the merchant who is 
quick to seize every bargain that is passing before him. 
As he buys up goods, so we must buy up opportunities 
for doing good, and especially those opportunities 
which are afforded us of speaking to men about their 
souls. 

Paul tells us to redeem the time. By that he seems 
to indicate that every moment has its opportunity as- 



ELEMENTS OF SUCCESS 27 

signed to it in the way of doing good. By doing duty 
at the moment of opportunity we make a purchase of 
it, and thus not only make gain for good and for 
Christ's kingdom^ but also take away that time from 
the evil one, and thus reduce the power of his dominion. 
When we let an opportunity to speak to a soul go by 
we let Satan take the time from us, and thus we con- 
tract a debt. Much is said in market circles of "get- 
ting a corner on the market." Let us get a corner on 
time and buy up every opportunity for Christ. 
Two or three things may be said in this connection : 

(a) Do not force opportunities. 

Force is the opposite of opportunity. If you are in 
constant and continual communion with God, He will 
direct you in this matter. The question may be asked, 
''Must we not then speak to people unless we are moved 
to do so?" Possibly the best answer to this question 
is, that if you are in continual fellowship with God, 
you will be moved whenever the opportunity is pre- 
sented to you. 

fb) Then again, We should see to it tlmt we miss 
no opportunities. 

As men in the gold fields are constantly on the look- 
out for gold veins, so should the personal worker be on 
the lookout for souls. Wherever we are, whatever we 
may be doing, wherever we may be going, we should be 
on the lookout for opportunities for personal dealing. 
Much, oh, how much depends upon the wise use of the 
opportune moment ! ''There is a season when it is good 
to take occasion by the hand." 

(c) Finally, The wise use of opportunities implies 
good planning of time. 

Many of us waste much time because we have no 
definite plan for that time. Again, many opportunities 
are lost because we do not give the proper relative value 
to time. Put first things first, the essential before the 



28 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

non-essential, the primary before the secondary. 

Two reasons are given in the Scriptures for the wise 
■Qse of time and opportunities : First, because the days 
are few, because the daytime is working time, and 
the night cometh — oh, how soon it cometh — when no 
man can work. We must work while it is day (Gal. 
6:10). Second, because "the days are evil": that is to 
say, the times and circumstances of life do not lend 
themselves to such spiritual use of time. The world 
seems to be wholly occupied with the enjoyment of sin 
and selfish pleasure. Such a world is not a great en- 
couragement to definite soul- winning work for God. 

5. An absolute conylction of truth. 

I- 

What is truth? The truth as it is in Christ Jesus — 

the truth as Jesus taught it, and as it is expressed in 
the Bible. The truth regarding man, his lost con- 
dition, and his salvability ; the truth regarding the re- 
demptive work of Jesus Christ and the possibilities of 
fallen man because of it; the truth regarding the 
future: that whosoever believeth shall be saved, and 
whosoever believeth not shall be condemned. 

Doubt and indecision in the worker beget doubt and 
indecision in the inquirer. If you are not sure that 
men are lost, then there is not much use in your trying 
to save them. If there is no wreck, there is no use 
in putting out the lifeboat. If there is no one drown- 
ing, what is the use of throwing out the lifeline? If 
your neighbor's house is not on fire, what is the use 
of going to his house in the dark of the night, and 
arousing him and his family, and warning him of the 
danger ? But if there is a shipwreck, if there is a man 
overboard, if your neighbor's house is on fire, then 
quickly and earnestly man the lifeboat, throw out the 
lifeline, give your neighbor warning. The personal 
worker must be fully assured of some things; and 
these are some of the things : that all men are sinners, 



ELEMENTS OF SUCCESS 29 

and as such will be lost, unless Jesus save them; that 
Jesus died to save them, and by faith in Him, and that 
alone, they can be saved; that outside of the redemp- 
tion that is in Christ Jesus all men are lost; that in 
Him men are saved. These are some of the truths 
concerning which the personal worker must not be in 
doubt if he is to be successful in winning men for 
Christ. 

6. A faith that neyer despairs. 

^ We must be able to see the germ of the saint in the 
chief of sinners, the fairest flower in Christ's garden 
in the outcast woman of the street. We must believe, 
as the genealogies of Jesus teach us, that Jesus came 
through all sorts of people in order that He might 
save all sorts of people. We must see all men, not as 
they are in themselves, but as they may be in the light 
of the cross of Christ. This is what Paul meant when 
he said he was determined to know no man after the 
flesh * * * If any man was in Christ Jesus, he was 
(or became) a new creature. (2 Cor. 5:17.) We are 
told that a very beautiful face of the Christ was once 
painted on a very soiled linen handkerchief. So can 
the image of Christ be painted upon the worst of men. 
Such men as John B. Gough and John G. Woolley, the 
gutter drunkards, and Jerry McAuley, the river pirate, 
may, yea, have become the great temperance orators, 
the successful mission workers. We must believe in 
a gospel of hope — not too quick to believe that there 
is such a thing as being past redemption point in the 
matter of salvation. "Is anything too hard for the 
Lord?'' (Gen. 18:14) — this must be the watchword of 
the successful personal worker. We are to "despair 
of no man" (Luke 6:35, E. V., margin). 

7. Infinite patience. 

^ The personal worker must be able to endure the "con- 
tradiction of sinners against themselves," the senseless 



30 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

arguments of those who oppose themselves, the treach- 
ery and deceit of those who follow Christ for "the 
loaves and fishes." He will deal patiently with men 
who are weak and who backslide easily. He will be 
called upon to lift them up after they have fallen more 
than once or twice. Judson, in Burmah, unable to 
tell of conversions in his first report, said: "Permit 
us to labor in obscurity for twenty years, and you shall 
hear from us again." And he was heard from. 

3. A deep sense of responsihility. 

Every personal worker ought to read often the third 
and thirty-third chapters of Ezekiel. Possibly no 
part of the whole Bible sets forth the responsibility 
of one man for another as do these chapters. It may 
not be our responsibility to bring every individual to 
Christ; but it is our responsibility to see that Christ 
is brought to every individual. _ Every man may not 
want Christ; but Christ wants every man. and it is our 
business to let every man know that Christ wants him. 
God has appointed me "my brother's keeper," whether 
I will it or not. "When I say unto the wicked, O 
wicked man, thou shalt surely die; if thou dost not 
speak to warn the wicked from his way, that wicked 
man shall die in his iniquity: but his blood will I re- 
quire at thine hand. Nevertheless, if thou warn the 
wicked of his way to turn from it: if he do not turn 
from his way, he shall die in his iniquity, but thou 
hast delivered thy soul" (Ezek. 33 :8, 9). 

Daniel Webster was once asked what was the most 
solemn thought he had ever entertained. In reply, he 
said : "My personal responsibility to God." Can there 
be any more solemn thought than this for a Christian 
worker ? 



THE PEESONAL WORKEE HIM- 
SELF—HIS QUALIFICATIONS 



CHAPTER m. 

THE PERSONAL WORKER HIMSELF — HIS 
QUALIFICATIONS. 

1. He must Ibe a thorough Christian. 

THE first step in bringing other men to Christ is to 
know the way to Him yourself. In Luke 22 :32, 
Jesus says to Peter: "And when thou art converted, 
strengthen thy brethren." Peter himself must first be 
right with God before he can bring others into a right 
relationship with God. 

Although God has in the past, and still does at pres- 
ent, allow even ungodly people to speak the word of 
life to perishing souls, as for example, unconverted 
ministers, — thereby making even the wrath of men to 
praise Him, — yet such cases are merely exceptions to 
the rule. Generally, one must be a thorough Christian 
himself before he can be instrumental in leading 
anxious souls to a seeking Saviour. ''First cast out the 
beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see 
clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's 
eye" (Matt. 7:5). 

2. He must be a Spirit-filled man. 

The Spirit of God must have control of his affections. 
He must live, move and have being in the Spirit. He 
must trust Him for guidance and direction. 

Philip the evangelist is a good illustration of this 
thought. In Acts 8 :29 we find these words : "Then the 
Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join thyself to 
this chariot." Philip was obedient to the promptings 
of the Spirit, and in the 30th verse we read "And 

33 



34 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

Philip ran thither to him." He might have said what 
Moses did, — ''Lord, send someone else." "Lord, I can- 
not speak to this stranger. I have never had an intro- 
duction to him. He may not care for my company." 
Some of us would have said that; but Philip was obe- 
dient to the promptings of the Holy Spirit, and did just 
what the Spirit commanded him to do, asking no ques- 
tions. The Bible says, "Philip ran to him," indicating 
his swift obedience. 

Are you willing to speak to those around you about 
their soul's eternal welfare? — to those who sit at the 
same table with you, and who abide under the same 
roof with you? Mother, father, has the Spirit never 
said to you : "Go join thyself to your child, and teach 
him or her the way of salvation?" Yes, but you have 
not obeyed. Knowest thou the awful responsibility 
resting upon thee? Kead Ezekiel 3:17-19. 

Listen ! hark ! they are calling the roll in heaven. 
Mother, where is your child? Father, where are your 
children? Young man, young woman, where are your 
friends? "While you are busy here and there, they 
are gone." While you are busy seeking after the 
things of earth, your children have slipped between 
your fingers, you have no more spiritual influence over 
them ; they are lost ! Kead 1 Kings 20 :39,40. 

3. He must be a man of prayer. 

It was while Peter was praying that he received the 
prompting of the Spirit to go to Cornelius and tell him 
what to do to be saved. "I was in the city of Joppa 
praying: and in a trance I saw a vision, A certain 
vessel descend, as it had been a great sheet, let down 
from heaven by four corners; and it came even to 

me And the Spirit bade me go with them, 

nothing doubting. Moreover these six brethren accom- 
panied me, and we entered into the man's house" (Acts 
11:5,12.) 



THE PERSONAL WORKER HIMSELF 35 

(a) We must pray that God will lead us to the right 
person. 

I do not think it is necessary for us, nor do I think 
God expects us, to speak to every person we see about 
his soul's salvation. We have not the time for that. 
I do believe, however, that, as the Spirit led Philip to 
go and join himself to a certain (this) chariot, so the 
Spirit of God will give us, in answer to prayer, the 
inward prompting, so that we may know when to speak 
and to whom. 

(d) We must pray also that God will ena'ble us to 
speak the right words. / 

We must ask Him to give the Word power; for we 
must not forget, that though Paul may plant and Apol- 
los water, yet it is God that must give the increase 
(1 Cor. 3:6). 



(e) Then we must pray that God will continue the 
work already begun in the heart of the person with 
whom we have spoken. 

And right here we may learn from the Apostle Paul,' 
who never forgot to remember his converts in prayer 
after he had left them (Eph. 1:16-20; Phil. 1:4. 5; Col. 
1:3,4). 

4^ He must haye a desire to see sonls sayed. 

The secret of success is here. Christ had a burning 
love for souls. Listen to Him as He stands on the 
mount overlooking the Holy City, and saying : "O Jeru- 
salem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and 
stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often 
would I have gathered thy children together, even as 
a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye 
would not" (Matt. 23:37). ^'And when he was come 
near, he beheld the city, and wept over it'^ (Luke 
19:41). 



^' 



36 PERSOXAL SOUL-WIXXIXG 

\ 

Have jou ever wept over souls? "Xo," you say; "I 

have never felt the burden of souls heavy enough for 

that; how may I feel the weight of souls?'' Consider 

the value of a soul; what it cost; what a sacrifice was 

made to redeem it ; its capabilities ; its eternal destiny 

to glory or despair; that you are in a very real sense 

your brother's keeper, and then ask God to make you 

feel the mighty importance of trying to rescue some 

perishing soul as a brand plucked from the burning. 

Paul had a passionate love for souls. He says: "I 
have great heaviness and continual sorrow in my heart. 
For I could wish that myself were accursed (or 
separated) from Christ for my brethren, my kinsmen 
according to the flesh" (Eom. 9:2,3). The Apostle 
Paul's heart broke loose from the prolonged logical 
argument and poured itself out in one vehement ex- 
clamation of love, ••! could, wish myself accursed for 
my brethren's sake," — "accursed," given over to hope- 
less, eternal death; accursed "from Christ," the joy, 
the joy of his soul ; "accursed," he the loyal one, from 
his all in all, if onlv the Israel of his love could be 
saved I 

A man may be a successful physician without having 
love for his patients; he may be a successful lawyer 
without having love for his clients; he may be a suc- 
cessful merchant without having love for his patrons : 
but no man can be a successful co-worker with God 
without having love for souls, and a longing desire to 
see them saved. 

When John Knox, in the enclosure behind his house, 
pierced the stillness of the night with the thrice-re- 
peated, intense appeal. "Give me Scotland, or I die!" 
that eager, yearning, well-nigh broken heart got its 
Scotland. When Brainerd went to sleep thinking of 
souls and dreaming dreams of them, and. waking, still 
thought and prayed for them, souls became his. "Tell 



TEE PERSONAL WORKER HIMSELF 37 

me," says Maclaren, "the depth of a Christian man's 
compassion, and I will tell you the measure of his use- 
fulness. The wealth of Egypt's harvest is propor- 
tioned to the depth of the Nile's overflow." Christ, 
the model Christian worker, is portrayed as "moved 
with compassion," as though a great surging tide 
flowed over his heart when he saw the multitudes 
standing before him in their want. 

The power of these great religious leaders of all 
time, lay deeper than their mighty intellects — it lay 
in their love for souls. 

Souls, souls, souls! I yearn for souls. This is the 
cry of the Saviour — and to save souls He died upon 
the cross, and remains until eternity their intercessor. 

Souls, souls, souls! This is the cry of Satan — 
and to obtain them he scatters gold to tempt them, mul- 
tiplies their wants and pleasures, and gives them praise 
that only infatuates. 

Souls, souls, souls! This must be our one cry 
and passion. Christian worker; and for the sake of 
one soul we must be willing to spend and be spent. 

5. He must have confidence in the power of, and in, the Word 
of Ood. 

We do well to heed the Lord's rebuke to Sarah in 
Gen. 18 :14, "Is any thing too hard for the Lord ?" No 
matter how desperate the case may be, God can save 
to the uttermost. If the person you are seeking to 
lead to Christ be the "chief of sinners," 1 Tim. 1 :15 
will suit him : 

This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all accepta- 
tion, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save 
sinners ; of whom I am chief. 

If he be a murderer, Isa. 1 :18 will comfort him : 

Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord: 
though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as 
snow ; though they be red like crimson, they shall be 
as wool. 



38 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

If an outcast, Luke 19:10 is just the passage he 
needs : 

For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that 
which was lost. 

Let us take for our motto, when we are tempted to 
be discouraged because of the seeming indifference and 
hardness of those we are seeking to lead to Christ, the 
following passages of Scripture: 

Matt. 19:25, 26: 

When his disciples heard it, they were exceedingly 
amazed, saying, Who then can be saved? But Jesus 
beheld them, and said unto them, With men this is im- 
possible ; but with God all things are possible. 

Job 42 :1, 2 : 

Then Job answered the Lord, and said, 
I know that thou canst do everything, and that no 
thought can be withholden from thee. 

Isaiah 55 :10, 11 : 

For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from 
heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the 
earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may 
give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater : 

So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth : 
it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accom- 
plish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the 
thing whereto I sent it. 

Fourteen hundred years before the birth of Jesus, 
Baalam, by special inspiration, addressed Balak with 
these profound words: "God is not a man that he 
should lie; neither the son of man, that he should 
repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath 
he spoken, and shall he not make it good?" (Num. 
23:19.) 

Paul the apostle, fifteen hundred years after Baalam, 
echoes the same testimony: "In hope of eternal life, 
which God, that cannot lie, promised before the world 
began" (Titus 1:2). Let us trust confidently in the 
Word and promises of God. 



THE PERSONAL WORKER HIMSELF 39 

An illustration will show more plainly what I mean : 
A Christian worker once met a man who was hardened 
in sin and skepticism. After speaking to him about 
becoming a Christian, he said : "I do not believe 
in the Bible, or in God, or in heaven or hell. I am a 
skeptic." The worker took no notice of the man's 
confession, but quoted to him this passage : ^'Except ye 
repent, ye shall all likewise perish" (Luke 13 :3). "But," 
he said again, ''did I not tell you I did not believe in 
the Bible? why do you quote it to me?" The Christian 
again quoted the same verse, and again the skeptic 
gave the same reply. After repeating that same verse, 
adding no words of his own to it, about a dozen times, 
the worker said to him, "Now, my friend, I do not 
remember half of what you have said to me; but you 
cannot forget the passage of Scripture I have quoted 
to you, and I am going to pray that God will, through 
that passage of Scripture, and His Holy Spirit, cause 
you to realize its truth." "But," he continued, "I do 
not believe it." Then was quoted Romans 3 :3, 4 : "For 
what if some did not believe? shall their unbelief make 
the faith of God without effect? God forbid," etc. 
The Christian then left the skeptic in the hands of 
God. 

The next night the skeptic sought him and confessed 
that he had spent a miserable night. He said: "That 
verse you quoted so often has haunted me ever since ; it 
will not leave my memory. Won't you show me how to 
find rest for my soul?" What a joy it was to point him 
to John 1 :29, leave him in Acts 13 :52, and commend 
him to Jude 24. Thus, you see, God will honor His own 
Word. 



INSTEUCTIONS TO 

THE SOUL-WIMEE 



CHAPTER IV. 

INSTRUCTIONS TO THE SOUL -WINNER. 

1. Who can engaq:e in this work of personal sonl- winning? 

FORTUNATELY, no Christian, however insignifi- 
cant he may feel himself to be, or however limited 
his talents, is shut out from the opportunity of soul- 
winning. Inasmuch as God holds all Christians re- 
sponsible for this work, it must be possible for all to 
do it. Aquila and Priscilla (Acts 18:26-28) are good 
illustrations of the opportunities that are afforded 
every individual Christian. Philip (Acts 8) and Paul 
(Acts 20:31) show us how preachers may engage in 
this work. 2 Kings 5:1-5 tells of a housemaid doing 
this kind of work. It is said that Lord Shaftesbury 
was led to Christ through one of his housemaids. John 

1 gives a picture of a teacher leading his pupil (v. 29) ; 
a hrother, his brother (vs. 40, 41) ; and a friend^ his 
friend (vs. 43-45) to Christ as the Saviour of the world. 

2 Timothy 1:5 and 3:15 afford us a splendid example 
for parents to lead their children to Christ. 

Every Christian should be a personal worker for 
Christ just as every sinner is a worker for Satan. No 
one is excluded from this great work. 

2, Where may personal sonl- winning be done? 

Is there any place in which it cannot be done? is a 
more fitting way to put it. Jesus did it in the temple, 
in the streets, on the seaside, in a boat, on the moun- 
tain-side, and in the house. 

Mr. Moody, who was perhaps the greatest personal 
soul-winner of his day, made it a practice of his life 

43 



44 PERSOXAL SOUL-WINXIXG 

to speak to men on the street-cars. In thus dealing 
with a man in a Detroit street-car. he asked him the 
question: "Are tou a Christian?" The man answered: 
''Xo, sir; but I wish I were.-' Mr. Moody there and 
then led the man to Christ. 

According to Oriental thought and custom, one with 
whom TOU break bread, or with whom tou sit at meat 
is, by that Tery fact, in coTenant with you, and you 
haTe sacred duties toward him which must not be 
shirked or aToided. Has not the Christian similar 
relations under similar circumstances? Yet how often, 
yea, rather how seldom, if at all, do we realize these 
priTileges and responsibilities I We talk to friends on 
other topics, such as politics, and the weather : why 
not speak to them of Christ? 

GoTernments haTe two ways of saTing life : the life- 
saving station and the lighthouse. The rescue mission 
is. the life-saTing station and crew ; but the ship must 
be on the rocks, or the man be in the water, before 
this agency can render help. The Sunday-school is a 
lighthouse; it warns the ship before it gets onto the 
rocks. What an opportunity both the rescue mission 
and the Sunday-school worker haTe to do personal soul- 
winning work! Yet how incomparably greater is the 
opportunity of the Sunday-school teacher. Jesus put 
a little child in the midst, and he has been in the 
midst, the center of attraction. CTer since ; the world 
rcTolTes around the little child. It is said that on nine- 
teen different occasions Jesus sat down and taught one 
scholar. 

The close of the regular church serTice affords a 
splendid opportunity for speaking to souls. Already 
hearts haTe in all probability been touched by the 
preached word, and may be longing to haTe someone 
deal definitely with them, and point them indiTidually 
to Jesus Christ. It was at the close of a great service 
that Philip won his couTert (Acts 8:37, 38). 



INSTRUCTIONS 45 

/ If you want a field of labor, 
You can find one anywhere. 

3. How personal soul-mnning work may be done. 

By the use of the mails. Write letters. Here is a 
vast and almost unemployed agency for the advance- 
ment of the kingdom of God. Dedicate your pen to 
the work of postal evangelism. A Christian Japanese 
telegraphed to his brother to come home because of 
important business. The brother came. He found 
out that the ^'important business" was in the nature 
of a great revival that was then in progress in Tokyo. 
After some hesitancy he decided to stay at home and 
attend the meetings. On the last night of the meetings 
he was converted. 

Nothing, however, takes the place of the personal 
heart-to-heart, face-to-face talk. This can be had in 
the shop, office, store, hall, church, on the street, in the 
home. Make it your business to talk with your friends 
about Christ. 

Tracts may he effectively used. One day a man rid- 
ing on a street-car in New York was handed a tract 
which read, ^'Look to Jesus when tempted, troubled, 
or dying!" The man read the tract carefully. As the 
car reached its destination and the passengers were 
getting off, he who received the tract said to the man 
who gave it to him : "Sir, when you gave me this tract, 
I was on my way down to the river to drown myself. 
My wife and son have both died, and there is nothing 
for me to live for. God bless you for giving me this 
encouraging message." Seventeen hundred people are 
said to have written to Dr. Chickering, the author of 
the tract, "What is it to believe on Christ?" stating 
that they were led to Christ by the use of this 
leaflet. Many people who may feel themselves too 
timid to speak a word for Christ, may be thus able to 
give the word in this manner. 



46 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

If you have a tract in your possession — and, by the 
way, all Christians should carry a supply of evangelis- 
tic literature with them ready for such use — you may 
give it. Let your friend read the tract, and then ask 
him what he thinks of it. 

How TO Begin. 

How to "begin a conversation along personal soul- 
winning lines is not always easily determined. A sug- 
gestion or two in this direction may not be out of place. 

Generally y men should deal with men, and women 
with women; the young with the young, and the old 
with the old. This rule applies particularly to adults, 
and not to adults dealing with children. Unless it is 
absolutely necessary, this rule should not be broken. 

Avoid introducing your subject by an abrupt ques- 
tion. Lead naturally up to the question of the inquirer 
becoming a Christian. Jesus, in his dealing with the 
Samaritan woman (John 4), and Philip (Acts 8) are 
good examples to follow. To begin by asking at once : 
^^Are you a Christian?" or ^'Are you saved?" or some 
such question may, in exceptional cases, be effective, 
but usually such an approach antagonizes. It is bet- 
ter, especially if you have time enough to do it, to 
begin on some other topic and gradually lead up to 
the question of the acceptance of Christ. Philip asked, 
^'Understandest thou what thou readest?" (Acts 8:30). 
Christ spoke to the Samaritan woman on the general 
subject of water to begin with (John 4:7). 

If you should be dealing with the inquirer at the 
close of a sermon or service, you may introduce your 
subject by asking him how he liked the sermon, etc. 

Get the inquirer alone, and do not allow yourself, 
if you can prevent it, to be interrupted. The presence 
of a third person is usually fatal to the effectiveness of 
personal work with souls. Often an inquirer who has 



INSTRUCTIONS 47 

been opening his heart to the worker has closed it at 
once as a third person has appeared. As a general 
rule, no one is convinced in the presence of a crowd; 
certainly no man will unbosom himself to a spiritual 
adviser in the presence of others. 

To be interrupted while dealing with an inquirer is 
ofttimes disastrous. Some well-meaning but poorly 
instructed people seem to find delight in seeking to 
encourage the inquirer and the worker by saying : ^'Oh, 
yes, my friend, what the worker is saying is true; do 
believe it; we are praying for you,'' or some such 
words. To do this may be fatal. The worker may have 
been dealing with the inquirer along a certain line of 
thought until he is at the point of yielding. For some 
one not acquainted with this method to come and igno- 
rantly interrupt the conversation may be to neutralize 
all that the worker has thus far done. Do not interrupt 
others ; do not allow others to interrupt you. 

Aim to 'bring about a decision as soon as you can. 
Get the inquirer on his knees at the earliest possible 
moment. This posture of the body has much more to 
do with the element of submission on the part of the 
will than we think. As a rule, the bended knee is the 
end of all argument. 

Emphasize the immediate acceptance of Jesus Christ 
as personal Saviour. Do not be content until the in- 
quirer has definitely settled his personal relationship 
to Jesus Christ. As many as receive Him become chil- 
dren of God. To receive Christ as personal Saviour 
is the all-important thing. It is not enough to answer 
the inquirer's questions, to dissolve his doubts, or to 
enlighten his ignorance. All this the worker may do 
and still leave the man unsaved. To leave the inquirer 
with the question of the acceptance of Jesus Christ as 
his personal Saviour settled — this is the aim and end 
of all personal dealing. 



48 PER80NAL SOUL-WrNNING 

Do not enter into a heated argument. Men are not 
usually convinced by this method of dealing. "The 
servant of the Lord must not strive" (2 Tim. 2:23, 24). 
Hold yourself well in hand. Keep your poise ; control 
yourself; do not lose your temper; be courteous at all 
times and under all circumstances. Kemember Jesus 
Christ — how graciously He received the contradiction 
of sinners. When He was reviled, He reviled not 
again. Do thou likewise. 

Be courageous. Do not fear the face of man. Ee- 
member that in spiritual matters the Christian worker 
possesses the confidence that comes from a settled con- 
viction of a right relation to God. The sinner does not 
possess this, and consequently does not have the cour- 
a^e that issues from it. The sinner is the fearful one ; 
the Christian is bold and courageous. Some Christians, 
however, are naturally timid, and, therefore, find it an 
almost impossible task to approach people in this way. 
We would recommend to such for their considera- 
tion the case of Peter and his timidity (or cowardice) 
before Pentecost (Mark 14:66-72), and Peter and his 
courage after Pentecost (Acts 2:14). We would also 
suggest that the prayer of the early Christians for 
courage be pondered and appropriated (Acts 4:23-31). 

Get the inquirer to read for himself the vers.es you 
use in dealing with him. It makes a much deeper im- 
pression upon his mind if he sees and reads the Scrip- 
tures for himself. Christian workers of the longest 
and largest experience particularly emphasize this 
point. 

Looking at the great number of Scripture references 
in this volume, it would seem like asking something 
that was impossible, to suggest the memorizing of them 
all. Yet it is a comparatively easy task if undertaken 
in the right manner. 

A few suggestions will be helpful here. 



INSTRUCTIONS 49 

1. Memorize the location of the verse together with 
the verse. You will find it just as easy to say, *'John 
1 :29, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the 
sin of the world,'' as you would if you merely said, 
"Behold the Lamb of God," etc., omitting to state the 
reference. 

2. Learn it. Don't get a faint, indefinite idea. If 
you want to remember any text in after years, let it 
make a deep, clear and vivid impression on your mind 
the moment you learn it. 

3. Read the verse over, say twenty times; close 
your Bible and see if you can repeat it correctly, then 
to be sure, read it again. Once writing the verse is 
worth a dozen repetitions of it by mouth. 

4. Review. This is the secret of memorizing. Re- 
view every day, every week, every month, and every 
year. 

5. Practice. Use the passages of Scripture. Seek 
occasions for talking to persons who have difficulties. 

The writer's book entitled, How to Memorize, issued by the pub- 
lishers of this work, will be found very helpful in memorizing any 
matter, but especially the Scriptures. 



THE imiNTEEESTED 

AND UNCONCEENED 



CHAPTER V. 



I. THE UNINTERESTED AND UNCONCERNED. 

HOW shall we treat those with whom we speak con- 
cerning their spiritual condition, and for whose 
salvation we are anxious, who nevertheless treat our 
approaches and earnest solicitations with seeming 
contempt, or, to say the least, with apparent indiffer- 
ence? Our best efforts, our most prayerful pleadings, 
seem not to move them. They remain not only un- 
moved, but uninterested. To us they seem to be an 
unreasonable and a gainsaying people. Such persons 
may be among our most intimate friends, members of 
our families, husband or wife, brother or sister. The 
thought of their being lost is more than we can bear. 
Yet we do not seem to be able to interest them in the 
salvation of their own souls. What shall we say ? what 
can we do? what arguments can we bring forth that 
shall, under God, be the means of bringing them to 
realize their need of Christ as their personal Saviour? 

We must not treat all men alike, any more than a 
physician treats all people alike who come to him for 
medical attention. Jude 22, 23 suggests a difference 
of method in dealing with souls^ — ^'And of some have 
compassion, making a difference : and others save with 
fear, pulling them out of the fire." 

There are four general ways in which we may deal 
with the Uninterested and Unconcerned: 

1, Aim to produce conyictioii of sin. 

All men need to be brought face to face with the 
fact that they have sinned, for without this knowledge 
there can hardly be any heartfelt need of a Saviour. 

53 



54 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

Of course, it is the work of the Holy Spirit to produce 
conviction of sin (John 16:9). No human teacher, no 
Christian worker, however faithful and consecrated, 
can produce it ; conscience cannot produce it ; even the 
Gospel itself cannot do it. Although the Word of 
God is the sword of the Spirit, yet, unless the Spirit 
of God draws forth and wields that sword, it lies 
powerless in its scabbard. Only when He wields it, 
is it ^'quick and powerful" (Heb. 4:12). The power is 
from God. Yet man is the instrument : it is the "sword 
of the Lord, and of Gideon," too. 

Now, what scriptures shall we use to produce con- 
viction of sin? Through the law is the knowledge of 
sin. "I had not known sin, but by the law" (Rom. 
7:7). A man must acknowledge himself to be a sinner 
before he can call on God for forgiveness. Therefore — 

(a) Use such passages of Scripture as are likely to 
produce conviction of sin. 

First, the fact of sin. Show the inquirer that he 
has sinned, that he is a sinner. To do this, use : 

Isa. 53 :6 : 

All we like sheep have gone astray ; we have turned 
every one to his own way ; and the Lord hath laid 
on him the iniquity of us all. 

Eom. 3:10, 23: 

There is none righteous, no, not one ; 

For all have sinned and come short of the glory of God. 

Show that "all" includes him. We may differ in the 
extent but not in the nature of sin. All have gone 
astray from God. If the inquirer says he has not 
sinned, show him 1 John 1 :8, 10. To say we have not 
sinned is to make God a liar. But God is true. He 
is "not a man that he should lie." "Let God be true, 
but every man a liar" (Rom. 3:4). 

It is possible that the inquirer may say, in this con- 
nection: "Well, I have not sinned much; I am not a 



UNINTERESTED AND UNCONCERNED 65 

great sinner." Ask him what is his definition of a 
great sinner. He will doubtless say, "One who has 
broken much of the law." You may then read to him 
Matt. 22 :37, 38 : 

Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God 
with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all 
thy mind. 

This is the first and great commandment. 

Ask him if he has loved God in the manner indicated 
in this verse — with all the heart, mind, soul, strength? 
Show him just what it means to thus love God; that 
we must love Him supremely, and put the doing of His 
will before all else. If he speaks the truth, he will 
confess that he has not thus loved God. Then ask 
him what commandment he has broken : ^'The first and 
the greatest." If a man breaks the greatest command- 
ment, is he not a great sinner? Then, again, to inten- 
sify the thought of sin, James 2 :10 may be used : 

For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend 
in one point, he is guilty of all. 

Show him from this passage that to break one com- 
mandment is to break them all. Therefore, according 
to his own definition of a great sinner, he is such a sin- 
ner, inasmuch as he has broken the whole law. 

(h) Use such passages as set forth the consequences 
of sin. 

Inasmuch as the inquirer has just admitted that he 
has not kept "the whole law," it is well to show him 
from Gal. 3:10 the penalty God has attached to such 
disobedience. 

For as many as are of the works of the law are un- 
der the curse : for it is written, Cursed is every one 
that continueth not in all things which are written 
in the book of the law to do them. 

The law demands a perfect and a continual obedience, 
and the man who fails to render such an obedience is 
"under the curse"; that is to say, he is separated and 



56 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

banished from God. The pronouncement of woe has 
already been passed upon him. He is "already con- 
demned'^ ; compare Rom. 6 :23 ; Ezek. 18 :4. 

Sometimes the objector will say, "I shall be glad to 
die, for then there will be an end to all my trouble." 
You may then show him that "death," in the Bible 
meaning of the word, does not denote cessation of exist- 
ence, but, on the contrary, an endless conscious exist- 
ence. To prove this, use: 

Rev. 21 :8 : 

But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, 
and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and 
idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the 
lake which burneth with fire and brimstone : which is 
the second death. 

Also Rev. 14 :10, 11 ; John 3 :36 and 8 :21, 24 to show 
that continuance in sin will shut the gate of heaven 
in a man's face, and bring down upon him the perpetual 
wrath of God. 

It has been objected to this method of dealing with 
men, that it is making an appeal on the ground of 
fear, which is unworthy and low. Suffice it to say in 
reply that we are conscious of no cowardice in thus 
appealing to the element of fear. Our Master appealed 
to it again and again. More than once did he refer to 
the worm that dieth not and the fire that shall never 
be quenched. If men will not respond to the higher 
motive of love, there is then nothing else for us 
to do than to appeal to the lower motive of fear. We 
must "by all means save some." If Mount Calvary 
will not melt the heart of the sinner, then we must 
take him to Mount Sinai, that it may be broken into 
penitence. 

(c) Particularly should the guilt of rejecting Christ 
as the Saviour he shown. 

Men do not realize as they should the enormity of the 
guilt of rejecting Jesus Christ. Yet unbelief is the 



UNINTERESTED AND UNCONCERNED 57 

greatest sin in the world. It is not generally recog- 
nized as such ; possibly because it is a state rather than 
an act, and has no outward form, as has the committal 
of some other sins, murder or adultery, for instance. 
Yet the sin of unbelief is the condemning sin of the 
world. It is the office of the Holy Spirit to convict 
men of this specific sin. To show the greatness of this 
sin use: 

John 3 :17-19 : 

For God sent not his Son into the world ta condemn 
the world; but that the world through him might be 
saved. 

He that believeth on him is not condemned ; but he that 
believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not 
believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. 

And this is the condemnation, that light is come into 
the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, 
because their deeds were evil. 

Note the context : Christ came not into the world to 
ruin it, but to save it. A man abandons himself 
to ruin by the rejection of Jesus Christ. 

Hebrews 10:28, 29 shows the awful punishment 
awaiting those who reject the redemptive work of Jesus 
Christ. 

He that despised Moses' law died without mercy under 
two or three witnesses : 

Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be 
thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son 
of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, 
wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath 
done despite unto the Spirit of grace? 

The more clearly God's will is made known, the 
greater the guilt in resisting it. The revelation of God 
in Christ is greater by far than the revelation of God 
in the law (Heb. 2.2). God's will has been fully made 
known in Christ, hence the guilt of rejecting Him. 

By using Hebrews 2 :3 with 12 :25 we learn that those 
who disobeyed the revelation of God as given by angels 
did not escape the punishment of God ; how much less 
"shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation,'' 
which was spoken by our Lord? 



58 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNINa 

2. Use such passages of Scripture as set forth the love of 
Ood in the gift of His Son, Jesus Christ, Seek to awaken 
the inquirer's gratitude to God for His unspeakahle gift. 

John 3:16 sets forth in a wondrous way the love 
of God to man : 

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only 
begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not 
perish, but have everlasting life. 

Many a time the mere reading of this verse has 
melted the soul of a hardened sinner to tears. The 
reading of the nineteenth chapter of John — the story 
of the crucifixion of Christ — if read carefully and pray 
erfully — will often break up the fountains of the deep 
of the sinner's heart and reveal to him the wondrous 
love of Christ for him. 

Isa. 53:4, 5: 

Surely he hath borne our griefs, and carried our sor- 
rows: yet we did esteem him stricken, smitten of God, 
and afflicted. 

But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was 
bruised for our iniquities : the chastisement of our peace 
was upon him ; and with his stripes we are healed. 

It is a good thing, in reading this passage, to change 
the pronoun "our" into "my/' and thus make the mat- 
ter more personal: "He was wounded for my trans- 
gressions. He was bruised for my iniquities." 

Kom. 2:4: 

Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and for- 
bearance and longsuffering ; not knowing that the good- 
ness of God leadeth thee to repentance? 

What a magnificent opportunity to dwell upon the 
goodness of God towards the sinner — ^His longsuffering, 
patience, sparing his life in spite of his frequent sin- 
ning, etc. Such goodness ought to lead men to repent 
of their sins and turn unto God. 

Here are some incentives given in testimony by some 
thoughtful Christians setting forth the reasons why 
they came to Christ ; 



UNINTERESTED AND UNCONCERNED 59 

"Fear set me to thinking, but love led me to decide." 
"The love of Jesus as of One who loved me and took 
care of me." 
"His personal love towards me." 
"John 3 :16." 

"The prayer in Gethsemane.'' 
"Because He first loved me." 

S. Sometimes it is well to appeal to the element of hope 
which lies deeply hidden in every man's nature. 

In Romans 8 :24 we are told that "We are saved by 
hope." This is a legitimate appeal. Christ appealed 
to the element of hope in the heart of the Samaritan 
woman when He said : "If thou knewest the gift of God 
. . . . thou wouldest have asked" (John 4:10). He 
held out the hope of heaven to the rich young ruler as 
an inducement to follow Him (Matt. 19:21). It was 
this element of hope that determined the choice of 
Moses, for "he had respect unto the recompense of re- 
ward" (Heb. 11:26, R. V.). 

The Christian worker, therefore, will do well to seek 
to create an interest in the things of the Christian 
faith. This may be done in a general way by using 
1 Tim. 4 :8 : 

For bodily exercise proflteth little : but godliness is 
profitable unto all things, having promise of the life that 
now is, and of that which is to cone. 

This passage teaches us that there are present ad- 
vantages, as well as future blessings, in being a Chris- 
tian. Then show the inquirer some of the blessings of 
the Christian life, the which, you may be very sure, 
he does not possess, but which he can have the moment 
he becomes a Christian. Let it be remembered here 
by the worker that not one of the blessings we are now 
going to mention is possessed by the sinner. He may 
claim that he does possess them; but the worker, be- 



60 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

lieving the Word of God rather than the word of man, 
believes the truth that the sinner is destitute of these 
things. He must also remember, that, deep down in 
the heart of man, there is a longing desire to possess 
these blessings. Here are some of the things the sinner 
may have, if he believes on Christ : 

First, he may know that his sins are all forgiven. 

How much many men would really give to be assured 
of this fact ! 

Use Acts 10 :43 : 

To him give all the prophets witness, that through his 
name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission, 
of sins. 

Ask him if he would not like to have the assurance 
that his sins are all forgiven, blotted out, pardoned; 
that the sin question is forever settled ; that there is no 
longer any barrier between him and God. He doubt- 
less will reply in the afiSrmative. You can then read 
this passage again to him, and tell him this blessing 
may be his, if he will accept Jesus Christ as his own 
personal Saviour. 1 John 1:9 may be used in the 
same way. 

Second, the Messing of peace. 

No wicked man has peace. The Word of God dis- 
tinctly says so. 

Isa. 57 :20, 21 : 

But the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it 
cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt. 
There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked. 

The sinner may dispute the Bible and tell you that 
iie has peace, but do not believe him. I remember well 
dealing with a man along this very line. He was living 
in sin, and yet claimed to have peace of soul. I quoted 
the above mentioned passage to him, but he still per- 
sisted in saying that he had peace. I said to him, 
"My friend, it is merely a question of believing you 



UNINTERESTED AND UNCONCERNED 61 

or God ; whom shall I believe ?'^ After a few moments 
he said, ''Believe God's Word, for the fact of the matter 
is I am the most restless man on the face of the earth." 
I then had him read for himself John 14 :27 : 

Peace I leave with you, my peace I give unto you : not 
as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart 
be troubled, neither let it be afraid. 

Isa. 26 :3 : 

Thou wilt keep him in perfect peace, whose mind Is 
stayed on thee : because he trusteth in thee. 

Third, The Messing of fellowship with God, 
1 John 1 :3 : 

That which we have seen and heard declare we unto 
you, that ye also may have fellowship with us : and 
truly our fellowship is with the Father, and with his 
Son Jesus Christ. 

These and many other blessings which the accept- 
ance of Christ brings with it may be dealt with further 
in detail as the circumstances in the case may de- 
termine. 

4. Sometimes St is the desire to be a blessing to otliers 
that leads some men to accept Christ as their Sayionr. 

Here are some of the expressions I have personally 
gathered from the testimony of Christian workers: "I 
wanted to engage in the Lord's work of winning souls, 
but I knew I could not unless I became a Christian.'' 
"God's need of laborers." "To keep from being a stum- 
bling-block to others." "To do something for the lost." 
"The thought of being able to help others." "The feeling 
which I had that I ought to do something for others, 
and for Christ." "I wanted to be of some good in the 
world." "To make my life count for something." 
These are the expressed reasons why these young men 
gave themselves to Jesus Christ. Why should we not, 
therefore, say to men, that they can do good in the 
world, be of much service to God and their fellowmen 
if they become Christians? The argument that a man 



62 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

may do good may be much more effective with him in 
leading him to Christ, than the presentation of the 
truth that much good will come to him personally 
by so doing. The appeal to Hobab (Num. 10:29-32), 
''Come thou with us, and we will do thee good," did not 
win; but the other argument, "Thou mayest be unto 
us instead of eyes,'' won. Jesus said : "For their sakes 
I sanctify myself" (John 17:19). 

Daniel 12 :3 : 

And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness 
of the firmament ; and they that turn many to righteous- 
ness as the stars for ever and ever. 

James 5 :20 may be used in the same way : 

Let him know, that he which converteth the sinner 
from the error of his way shall save a soul from death, 
and shall hide a multitude of sins. 



THOSE WHO ARE INTERESTED 
AND CONCERNED, BUT IGNO- 
RANT OF THE WAY OF LIFE 



CHAPTER VI. 

II. THOSE WHO AKE INTEEESTED AND CON- 

OEKNED, BUT IGNOKANT OF THE WAY 

OF LIFE. 

THERE are many seeking after God who do not 
know the way to Him. Like the Ethiopian 
eunuch, they are interested and concerned about the 
way of life, and say with him, ^'How can I know the 
way, except someone show me?" More than one soul 
Is, at this very minute, crying out, "O that I knew 
where I might find Him ! I go forward, but He is not 
there; and backward, but I cannot perceive Him; on 
the left hand where He doth work, but I cannot be- 
hold Him; He hideth Himself on the right hand, that 
I cannot see Him." Like the Philippian jailer, many 
are convinced of their sin, and cry out, '^What shall I 
do to be saved?" Happy indeed is that Christian 
worker who, like Philip and Paul, can "find the place 
where it is written * * * Believe on the Lord 
Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved." 

A splendid illustration of one who is interested and 
concerned in the salvation of his soul, but ignorant of 
what to do to be saved, is found in Cornelius in Acts 
10 and 11. He was desirous of becoming a Christian, 
but was ignorant of the way until the Lord sent Peter 
unto him to tell him words whereby he might be saved. 

What to Do to Become a Christian. 
1. Show the inquirer that he must repent. 

Repentance is the first step into the kingdom. It is 
useless to discuss here which comes first — ^repentance, 

65 



66 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

faith, regeneration, etc. The inquiry room is not a 
theological clinic or a seminary class-room. It is no 
place for hair-splitting definitions and relations. So 
far as the purpose of leading the inquirer to Christ is 
concerned, repentance comes first: "Ye repented not 
* * * that ye might believe" (Matt. 21:32). 

Use Isa. 55 :7 : 

Let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous 
man his thoughts : and let him return unto the Lord, 
and he will have mercy upon him ; and to our God, for 
he will abundantly pardon. 

Use also Acts 26:20; 2 Chron. 7:14. 

These passages show that the first thing that God 
requires of a man who desires to become a Christian is 
that he repent. There is no conversion without repent- 
ance. 

It may be necessary to show what repentance is. For 
this purpose use Psalm 38 :6, 18 : 

I am troubled ; I am bowed down greatly ; I go mourn- 
ing all the day long. 

For I will declare mine iniquity ; I will be sorry for 
my sin. 

Use also 2 Cor. 7:9, 10; Matt. 26:75. 

These scriptures show that a deep, pungent, heart- 
felt sorrow for sin is an essential element in repent- 
ance. 

Men need to moarn because of their sin. Godly sor- 
row is that which is wrought in the soul by the 
Spirit of God as man catches a glimpse of the awful- 
ness and the guilt of his sin. It may not be necessary 
to shed an abundance of tears, but there must be a 
real heart-sorrow. If Christ wept over the sin of others, 
surely we ought to weep over our own sins. 

Kepentance involves the confession of sin. Like 
David, we must say : "I have sinned, and done this evil 



INTERESTED, BUT IGNORANT 67 

in thy sight.'^ The Psalmist not only said : "I will 
be sorry for my sin," but also ^'I will declare my 
iniquity." 

Use 1 John 1 :9 : 

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to for- 
give us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteous- 
ness. 

Use also Psalm 32 :5 ; Luke 18 :13. 

God cannot forgive my sin until I confess it to Him. 
If I do confess, then His promise is, "He is faithful 
and just to forgive." It is a good thing to get the 
inquirer to be specific in his confession. General con- 
fessions are good ; but the confession of particular sins, 
as well as of sin as a whole, is better. Say with David : 
"I have done this evil in Thy sight." (Compare Dan. 
9:3-11.) 

Attention ought to be drawn to the fact that there 
should be confession to man also, if man has been 
wronged in the sinning. 

Use Matt. 5 :23, 24 : 

Therefore if thou bring thy gift to the altar, and 
there rememberest that thy brother hath aught against 
thee ; 

Leave there thy gift before the altar, and go thy 
way ; first be reconciled to thy brother, and then come 
and offer thy gift. 

Use also Matt. 6 :14, 15 ; Luke 19 :8. 

Too often is this truth overlooked in our dealings 
with men. We must see to it that men are right 
with man as well as with God. "If a man say, I love 
God, and hateth his brother, he is a liar : for he that 
loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, how can he 
love God whom he hath not seen?" (1 John 4 :20.) 

Repentance involves a forsaking of sin. 

No repentance is real that does not lead a man to 
forsake his sin. Repentance is not only a heart 



68 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

broken for sin; it is also a heart broken from sin. 
Until a man has turned away from his sinful ways, he 
has not truly repented, no matter how loud his pre- 
tensions thereto may be. 

Use Prov. 28:13: 

He that covereth his sins shall not prosper : but whoso 
confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy. 

Use also Isa. 55 :7 ; Ezek. 33 :11. 

2. Show the inquirer that he must hare faith in order to 
be saved. 

He must not only repent, he must "repent, and be- 
lieve the Gospel." Indeed, repentance is in order to 
faith : "Ye repented not afterward, that ye might be- 
lieve" (Matt. 21:32). 

There must be faith in the Lord Jesus Christ as the 
Saviour from the guilt and power of sin. 

Use Isa. 53 :6 : 

All we like sheep have gone astray ; we have turned 
every one to his own way ; and the Lord hath laid on 
him the iniquity of us all. 

Also Gal. 3:13; 2 Cor. 5:21. 

In these passages we have Christ presented to us 
as God's sacrificial lamb bearing the sin of the world, 
charged by God to carry the burden of the world's 
iniquity. The wrath due our sin was made to strike 
upon Him; the curse due our sin was borne by Him 
in His own body on the tree. It was "instead of us" 
that He suffered and died. "He was made sin for us," 
in order that we, by accepting His finished work, 
"might be made the righteousness of God in Him." 
This is, to say the least, a vital part of the content of 
saving faith. A man must believe this in order to be 
saved. 



INTERESTED, BUT IGNORANT 69 

Not only are these facts to be believed, but Jesus 
Himself is to be received as a personal Saviour. Only 
thus does a man become a child of God by a legitimate 
right derived from a competent source. This truth is 
brought out in John 1:12: 

But as many as received him, to them gave he power 
to become the sons of God, even to them that believe 
on his name. 

That is to say, as many as, accepting Him (i. e., 
acknowledging His claims as Saviour and King), re- 
ceived Him as such, became, thereby, sons of God. 
First, I believe His claims, and then I receive Him to 
be all He claims to be — my personal Saviour and Lord. 
Thus believing and receiving I am saved. 

3. Show the inquirer that he must confess Jesus Christ he- 
fore the world. 

Faith without confession is no more faith than con- 
fession without faith is real confession. Salvation may 
be forfeited by an unwillingness to confess Christ. If 
faith does not grow into confession, it dies back, first 
into mere opinion, and then into unbelief. To confess 
Christ is a test of the reality of our faith in Him; for 
it is written: ^'Whosoever believeth on Him shall not 
be ashamed." 

Use Rom. 10 :9-ll : 

That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord 
Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath 
raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 

For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness ; 
and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. 

For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him 
shall not be ashamed. 

Note, in using this passage, how that, in a sense, 
salvation hinges upon the confession of Christ. ''If 
* * *, thou shalt be saved." Use also Matt. 10: 
32, 33. 



70 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

Ask, "Who is it that is going to be confessed before 
the Father and the angels in heaven?" The answer 
will be, "Those who confess Christ here on earth." 
Then ask, "Whom will Christ deny in heaven?" The 
text gives the answer: Those who were ashamed to 
confess Christ here on earth. From this it is clear 
that, if a man would be a Christian, he must be willing 
to confess Jesus Christ before the world. 

4* Show the inquirer that Christ must be receired as Lord 
and King. 

* It is not enough to receive Jesus Christ as Saviour 
from the guilt of sin; He must be received as the 
director and controller of our life. From henceforth, 
the Christian must say, "It is no longer I that live, 
but Christ that liveth in me. Christ, not I, is the 
Master of my life. From henceforth all that is done 
must be done with His approval." 

Acts 2:36: 

Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, 
that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have 
crucified, both Lord and Christ. 

Col. 3:17: 

And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the 
name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the 
Father by him. 

See also John 2 :o. 



THOSE WHO ARE INTERESTED 
AND ANXIOUS TO BECOME 
CHRISTIANS, BUT HAVE DIF- 
FICULTIES IN THE WAY 



CHAPTER Vn. 

III. THOSE WHO ARE INTERESTED AND 

ANXIOUS TO BECOME CHRISTIANS, BUT 

HAVE DIFFICULTIES IN THE WAY. 

WITH some people there are certain difficulties and 
obstacles which seem to stand in the way of an 
acceptance of Christ as Saviour and Lord. These diffi- 
culties must be solved — at least those that are solv- 
able — and the obstacles removed. It is the business 
of the Christian worker, in co-operation with the Holy 
Spirit, to render this service. The incident of the 
raising of Lazarus from the dead may serve to illus- 
trate what we here have in mind. Between the life- 
giving Christ and the dead body of Lazarus there lies 
a huge stone. Christ has only to speak the word, and, 
moved by hands irresistible, that stone moves away 
to reveal the secrets of the tomb. But Christ does not 
speak that word, nor does He address the stone. He 
addresses those standing around — to them He says: 
"Roll ye away the stone.'' They must do what they 
can; what they cannot do. He will do. So is it with 
us in our dealing with souls that are dead in sin : we 
may not be able to speak the word that shall mean life 
from the dead, but we can endeavor to remove the 
obstacles which impede their coming to Him who is 
the Life. To remove these obstacles, to answer these 
objections, and to solve thefee difficulties is not, how- 
ever, the main purpose of the Christian worker. He 
does these things simply to bring the sinner into con- 
tact with the Saviour. Following are some of the diffi- 
culties, objections, and excuses: 

73 



74 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

1. **! feel tliat I haye sinned too greatly to be forgiyen." 

How shall we deal with this difficulty? Admit the 
fact that the inquirer has sinned greatly. Do not 
minimize sin ; there is too little deep conviction of sin 
nowadays. This may be the reason why there are so 
many sham conversions. A man will not appreciate 
Christ as a Saviour until he realizes that he himself 
is a sinner. He that is forgiven much will love much. 

Endeavor next to show from the Scriptures that no 
sin is too great to be forgiven, if there is penitence and 
confession. Use the following passages : 

1 Tim. 1 :15 : 

This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all acceptSr 
tion, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save 
sinners ; of whom I am chief. 

Ask the question : "Whom did Jesus Christ come into 
the world to save?" The answer will be, "Sinners." 
"Only sinners?" "No, the chief of sinners." "Do you 
feel that you are a sinner?" "Yes, indeed, the chief 
of sinners." Then you can show him that he is just 
the one Jesus Christ came into the world to save. 

Romans o :6-8 : 

For when we were yet without stren^h, in due time 
Christ died for the ungodly. 

For scarcely for a righteous man will one die : yet 
peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. 

But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, 
while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. 

These verses state that Christ died not for the right- 
eousness of saints, but for the unrighteousness of sin- 
ners. A "righteous" man is one who keeps the law; 
a "good" man is one who does more than keep the 
law — he gives "good measure, pressed down, running 
over." The one "without strength" is the one who 
is without the ability to do what he knows to be right. 



ANXIOUS, BUT PERPLEXED 75 

Now, when we were neither "righteous" nor "good," 
but, on the contrary, when we were, weak and ungodly, 
Christ died for us. The righteous man demands our 
respect; the good man, our love. When we deserved 
neither love nor respect, Christ died for us. Christ 
died for sinners. 

Matthew 9 :12, 13 : 

But when Jesus heard that, he said unto them, They 
that be whole need not a physician, but they that are 
sick. 

But go ye and learn what that meaneth, I will have 
mercy, and not sacrifice : for I am not come to call the 
righteous, but sinners to repentance. 

Kead the context. Recall with what ignominy and 
shame the publicans were regarded. Show from 
Christ's acceptance of this publican's invitation His 
attitude toward great sinners. Verses 12 and 13 are 
Christ's defense of his action, and at the same time 
show us the purpose of His coming into the world — 
"not to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance," 

Luke 19 :10 : 

For the Son of man is come to seek and to save that 
which was lost. 

This passage distinctly tells us that Christ left His 
home in the glory to save whom? "The lost." The 
inquirer claims to be a lost sinner, therefore he is just 
the one Jesus Christ came to save. 



2. Those who say: *1 have no feeling; I do not feel as though 
I want to Ibe a Christian.'' 

This is a large and a difficult class to deal with. 
The question of emotion in religion is an intricate one. 
Leading psychologists have spent much time debating 
the question pro and con. There still remains much 
diversity of opinion on the subject. After all, the 
degree of emotion in religion must, in the very nature 



76 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

of the case, be determined by the temperament of the 
individual concerned. 

As to the source of this excuse, it may come from 
exaggerated views of some of the conversions recorded 
in the Bible; e. g., the Philippian jailer (Acts 16), or 
Saul of Tarsus (Acts 9). If so, it is well to remind 
them of the childhood conversion of Timothy (2 Tim. 
3), and of John the Baptist, who was filled with the 
Holy Ghost from his mother's womb (Luke 1:15). 

This excuse may arise, in the next place, from the 
striking testimonies given in church meetings and else- 
where by those who have found Christ as their Saviour. 
Said one such man sometime ago : ^'I had a long and 
bitter experience because of the language of people in 
testimony meetings. At times, I have felt as though 
I was not as religious as I ought to be, or rather had no 
religion whatsoever." Once a man in New England was 
accosted by Mr. Moody, and being asked if he were a 
Christian, replied, ^'No, it hasn't struck me yet." This 
man was looking for an experience similar to one he 
had heard a friend of his testify to some months before. 
He thought it was necessary for him to have a similar 
experience before he could become a Christian. These 
people think they will get a peculiar and strange inner 
purpose, a kind of tugging at their will power by a 
divine impulse which will suggest what to do and 
what not to do. There can be no doubt but that con- 
siderable emotion is present in some conversions, but 
certainly not in all; nor are we to consider it to be 
absolutely necessary to any. 

Where in all the Bible is feeling demanded as a 
requisite to salvation? Did Jesus command it? Did 
Paul, or John, or Peter? Indeed, by referring to the 
story of Jacob's deception (Gen. 27), we see the folly 
of depending upon mere feeling. 



ANXIOUS, BUT PERPLEXED 77 

Jer. 17 :9, 10 : 

The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately 
wicked: who can know it? 

I the Lord search the heart, I try the reins, even to 
give every man according to his ways, and according 
to the fruit of his doings. 

This verse may be used to good advantage in this con- 
nection. It shows that the human heart is not to be 
absolutely relied upon in such matters. 

It will be helpful to show, that, by the testimony of 
many living witnesses, salvation may be secured with- 
out the kind or amount of feeling some seem to think 
is necessary. A recent report shows, that, of over 2,000 
conversions, only 18 per cent were accompanied with 
any emotion like the fear of hell, or great trembling 
because of great sinfulness. And in some of these 
cases the sorrow was an indefinable something, rather 
than any clearly defined state of feeling. Indeed, a 
great proportion of those questioned bore witness to 
the fact that a sense of sin came really after their 
conversion. God's order is fact, faith, and then feel- 
ing. Satan reverses this order, making feeling first, 
faith last. 

Show From the Bible What God Requires in Order 

TO BE Saved. 

('a; Faith. John 1:12: 

But as many as received him, to them gave he power 
to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on 
his name. 

Also Acts 13 :38, 39 ; John 3 :36. 

(1)) Confession and forsaking of sin. 
Prov. 28 :13 : 

He that covereth his sins shall not prosper : but whoso 
confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy. 

Also 1 John 1:9; Isa. 55:7. 



78 



PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 



It might be well to use the method suggested under 
"The Uninterested and Unconcerned" — such passages 
as are likely to produce conviction of sin. 

8. Those ivho say, "I am seeking, bnt I cannot find Christ." 

The trouble is, undoubtedly, that they are not seek- 
ing God sincerely. 

Use Jer. 29 :13 : 



And ye shall seek me, and find me, when ye shall 
search for me with all your heart. 

Also Rom. 10 :6-10 ; John 12 :37-41. 

These passages show that it is possible to tell the 
very moment when a man may find Christ — the very 
moment he seeks for Him with all the heart. He is 
not far away from any one of us (Acts 17:27, 28). 

You may next show that not only is it true that he 
is seeking Christ, but also that Christ is seeking him. 
The parable of the Prodigal Son, and that of the 
Saviour seeking the Lost Sheep (Luke 15) both illus- 
trate this truth. It ought not to take long for a seek- 
ing sinner and the seeking Saviour to meet. 

It might be well, seeing he does not know how to 
seek God properly, to show him how to do so. See 
Chapter VI, on "Those Who are Interested and Con- 
cerned, but Ignorant of the Way of Life." 



4. 



"I would like to be a Christian, but I cannot giye up my 
eyfl ways." 

There are two ways of dealing with this class : 

(a) Show them that they are not to depend upon 
their oivn strength to give up their sinful icays, 'but 
that the poiver of Christ in their hearts will enable 
them to overcome all evil. 



ANXIOUS. BUT PERPLEXED 79 

Phil. 4 :13 : 

I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth 
me. 

Ezek. 36:25-27: 

Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye 
shall be clean : from all your filthiness, and from all 
your idols, will I cleanse you. 

A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit 
will I put within you : and I will take away the stony 
heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart 
of flesh. 

And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to 
walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, 
and do them. 

Also use 2 Cor. 5 :14-17. 

The Inspiring and strengthening truth prominent in 
all these passages is that God will put a spirit into our 
hearts that will enable us to overcome our evil ways; 
that we are strengthened to live upright when we are 
in Christ ; that we need not fear the power of evil, if we 
are truly sons of God; that, through faith in God, the 
impossible becomes possible. 

(h) They should te given to understand that they 
can and they must give up their evil ways or 'perish. 

Gal. 6 :7, 8 : 

Be not deceived ; God is not mocked : for whatsoever 
a man soweth, that shall he also reap. 

For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap 
corruption. 

Rom. 2 :8, 9 : 

But unto them that are contentious, and do not obey 
the truth, but obey unrighteousness, indignation and 
wrath, 

Tribulation and anguish, upon every soul of man that 
doeth evil, of the Jew first, and also of the Gentile. 

Also use Eccl. 11 :8, 9. 



5. "I would like to become a Christian, but it would hurt 
my business if I did." 



80 PERSONAL SOUL-WIXNING 

There is much truth in this objection so far as some 
forms of business are concerned. There are some com- 
modities that no man. Christian or non-Christian, 
ought to handle, or sell to his fellowmen. This much 
is most certainly true with regard to some forms of 
business, that, as soon as a man becomes a Christian, 
he must forsake them. For example, a Christian 
saloon-keeper is a contradiction. 

It is a comforting thought, however, to know that, in 
the ordinary, necessary and legitimate lines of business, 
a man can conduct himself as a Christian man. It 
must be conceded that there may, and do arise oppor- 
tunities where a prevarication of the truth, a false 
representation, or an unrighteous investment promise, 
and even yield, large financial returns, whereas strict 
adherence to truth and righteousness would have some- 
what lessened the receipts. It is just at this point 
that the above-named objection becomes important of 
consideration. 

That a man can be a business man and a Christian — 
this is most certainly true. That a man sometimes 
loses bv lovaltv to the Christian standard in business, 
is also true. That in the end every man who carries 
Christ into his business dealings comes out gloriously 
triumphant and successful there can be not the slight- 
est reasonable doubt. 

In dealing with this class of excuses we need to 
make very prominent the great and eternal truth that 
that "which is seen is temporal — but that which is 
unseen is eternal"; that "a man's life consisteth not 
in the abundance of things which he possesseth" ; that 
very often, if not always, in our vain attempt to gain 
the world, we lose our souls. 

The following passages are helpful in dealing with 
this class : 



ANXIOUS, BUT PERPLEXED 81 

2 Chron. 25 :9 : 

And Amaziati said to the man of God, But what shall 
we do for the hundred talents which I have given to 
the army of Israel? And the man of God answered, 
The Lord is able to give thee much more than this. 

Mark 10 :29, 30 : 

• 

And Jesus answered and said, Verily I say unto you, 
There is no man that hath left house, or brethren, or 
sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or 
lands, for my sake, and the gospel's, 

But he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time, 
houses, and brethren, and sisters, and mothers, and child- 
ren, and lands, with persecutions ; and in the world to 
come eternal life. 

A saloon-keeper, who was desirous of becoming a 
Christian, but who was doubtful of his ability to sup- 
port himself and family, if he gave up his business, 
was shown these verses. The thought that God was 
able to give him much more than he had to give up 
for Christ, so strengthened him that he at once relin- 
quished his illegitimate business and came out de- 
cidedly for Christ. 

Mark 8 :36 : 

For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the 
whole world, and lose hia own soul? 

This verse is a good problem in profit and loss. A 
man cannot gain the world and save his soul at the 
same time. Which is the wiser thing to do: sacrifice 
the salvation of the soul for the paltry gaining of 
material things by non-Christian methods, or be honest 
in business, be satisfied with a little less, if need be, 
and save the soul? 

Luke 12 :16-21 : 

And he spake a parable unto them, saying : The ground 
of a certain rich man brought forth plentifully : 

And he thought within himself, saying. What shall I 
do, because I have no room where to bestow my fruits? 

And he said. This will I do : I will pull down my 
barns, and build greater ; and there will I bestow all 
my fruits and my goods. 



82 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

And I will say to my soul. Soul, thou hast much 
goods laid up for many years ; take thine ease, eat, 
drink, and be merry. 

But God said unto him. Thou fool, this night thy soul 
shall be required of thee : then whose shall those things 
be. which thou hast provided? 

So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is 
not rich toward God. 

The parable of the Rich Fool shows the result of 
living only for the things of this world, and having no 
treasure in the world to come. We can carry none of 
this world's goods into the next world. We leave them 
for others. We leave the world as we came into it — 
empty. The only thing that will be of any value to us 
in the world to come will be what we have done for 
Christ and in His name. 

Matthew 6:33: 

But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his righteous- 
ness ; and all these things shall be added unto you. 

Show the inquirer from this verse that his first duty 
is to see that his business does not interfere with his 
religion. 



6. "I would like to be a Christian, but I cannot forgiye my 
enemies." 

(a) Show them that what is seemingly impossible 
to the natural man is quite possiMe to the Christian 
through grace; that God can take away from us a 
heart filled with hatred and replace it with a heart 
filled with love, 

Ezek. 36 :25-27; Mark 9 :13. 

Phil. 4:13. (See under 4), p. 78. 

(J)) Show them that unless they forgive their 
enemies, God will not forgive them. 

To have forgiven others is one of the pleas we need 
to offer to God for our own forgiveness. 



ANXIOUS, BUT PERPLEXED 83 

Matt. 6:12: 

And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. 

The true rendering of this verse is: "And forgive us 
our debts as we have forgiven our debtors." God's for- 
giveness is conditioned, in a sense, on our having for- 
given our enemies. 

The parable of the Unmerciful Servant is full of in- 
structive truth along this line of thought. Read it care- 
fully. It is found in Matthew 18 :23-35. 

He who refuses to forgive those who have wronged 
him, shuts the door of heaven in his own face. In the 
eyes of God he is no better than a murderer, and none 
such shall ever enter the gates of heaven. 

1 John 3 :15 : 

Whosoever hateth his brother is a murderer ; and ye 
know that no murderer hath eternal life abiding in him. 

This excuse, or more properly, this great sin, is hold- 
ing more people in its grasp than we have any idea of. 
It is worthy of note that it is the only petition in the 
Lord's Prayer that our Saviour deemed it necessary 
to pass any comment on. And why? Undoubtedly, 
because He knew what a tight and almost relentless 
grip it would have on many hearts in all ages. To 
cherish ill-feeling and hatred in our hearts is a damning 
sin; and the sooner men understand it the better for 
them. 

7. "I must become better before I can become a Christian." 

The difficulty with this class of inquirers is that 
they feel that they must attain to a certain degree of 
moral character before they can be accepted by Jesus 
Christ. This attitude toward salvation is fundamen- 
tally wrong. It seeks to make salvation dependent 
partly upon works and partly upon grace, whereas sal- 



84 PERSOXAL SOUL-WINXIXG 

vation is all of grace. A man must come to Christ as 
a poor lost and helpless sinner with nothing but his 
sins to plead. 

Nothing in my hand I bring, 
Simply to Thy cross I cling; 
Naked, come to Thee for dress; 
Helpless, look to Thee for grace; 
Foul, I to the fountain fly; 
Wash me, Saviour, or I die. 

The following passages are effective in dealing with 
this class: 

Matt. 9 :12, 13 : 

But when Jesus heard that, he said unto them, 
They that be whole need not a physician, but they that 
are sick. 

But go ye and learn what that meaneth. I will have 
mercy, and not sacrifice : for I am not come to call the 
righteous, but sinners to repentance. 

Eom. 5 :6-8 : 

For when we were yet without strength, in due time 
Christ died for the ungodly. 

For scarcely for a righteous man will one die : yet 
peradventure for a good man some would even dare to 
die. 

But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, 
while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. 

In these passages we are taught that Christ came 
not to save those who were good and righteous, or who 
had attained a certain degree of morality; indeed, the 
opposite is the case, he came to save the sinful and 
the unworthy. 

It will be well to use illustrations from the Scrip- 
tures which show the willingness of God to save sinners 
just as they are. The prodigal son (Luke 15:18-24), 
was received just as he was; the thief on the cross 
(Luke 23:3943) surely had no time for reformation, 
and yet he was received by Christ. The parable of the 
Pharisee and the Publican (Luke 18:10-14) is a splen- 
did illustration of the truth that a man must take the 
sinner's place in order to be received. 



THE SELE-EIGHTEOUS 



A 



CHAPTER Vm. 

IV. THE SELF-EIGHTEOUS. 

THE people composing this class may be designated 
as those, who, being approached upon the sub- 
ject of Christianity, begin at once to minimize the 
simple, Christ-like faith of the Gospel, and magnify 
their own good works. They say: ''We are honest; 
we pay our debts; we observe the Golden Kule in all 
our dealings ; we are liberal and beneficent in our gifts 
to charity, and upon these things we base our hopes for 
the future welfare of the soul." 

Now, the question paramount in this case is this; 
Can the good works and meritorious deeds of men 
prove a sufficient basis for the inheriting of life eter- 
nal? or do men need the cleansing blood of Jesus 
Christ to wash away their sins, and the impeccable mer- 
its of the Saviour to be put to their account ? On what 
does a man's hope of heaven depend? Upon himself 
or upon the Christ? To what source shall we look for 
a definite and conclusive answer to a question so im- 
portant and fraught with such great and eternal 
issues? Surely our recourse must be to the Word of 
the living God. 

How shall we proceed to deal with this class of 
persons? Use such passages of Scripture as w^ill be 
likely to show them the futility of their mere human 
merits. 



1. Show them that the Bible teaclies salyation by faith in 
the merits of Christ, and not in the g^ood works of men. 



87 



88 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

The following passages will reveal this truth : 
Rom. 3:20: 

Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh 
be justified in his sight ; for by the law is the knowl- 
edge of sin. 

Rom. 4 :2-6 : 

For if Abraham were justified by works, he hath 
whereof to glory ; but not before God. 

For what saith the Scripture? Abraham believed 
God and it was counted unto him for righteousness. 

Now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned 
of grace, but of debt. 

But to him that worketh not, but believeth on him 
that justifieth the ungodly, his faith is counted for 
righteousness. 

Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the 
man unto whom God imputeth righteousness without 
works. 

Also Gal. 2 :16, 3 :10, 11. 

From these and numerous other passages we are 
taught that "good works," which are exceedingly val- 
uable as the results and consequence of faith in Christ, 
yet have no saving merits whatever, when separated 
from that which gives them real value in the currency 
of heaven. 

2. Show them that God looks not only upon the ontward acts 
of life, but upon the inner, hidden motiye of the heart. 

In the eyes of God actions are estimated, not by the 
exterior form, but by the inner power and motive which 
prompted them. Many good deeds would lose this 
qualifying adjective if measured by the motive which 
caused them. The following passages bring out this 
truth very forcefully : 

Luke 16 :15 : 

And he [Jesus] said unto them, Ye are they which 
justify yourselves before men ; but God knoweth your 
hearts ; for that which is highly esteemed among men 
is abomination in the sight of God. 



THE SELF-RIGHTEOUS 89 



Prov. 16:2: 



All the ways of a man are clean in his own eyes; but 
the Lord weigheth the spirits. 

Isa. 64 :6 : 

But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our 
righteousnesses are as filthy rags. 

Also Jer. 17:9, 10; Phil. 3:9; 1 Sam. 16:7; Prov. 
30 :12. 

One important thought is borne home upon us as we 
read these passages, and it is this : the absolute worth- 
lessness of all action not based on right motives. Let 
us, as Christian workers, seek to impress those with 
whom we deal with this solemn truth. 

3. Show that we can please God hy faith only. 
The Jews asked Jesus in John 6:28: 

What shall we do, that we might work the works of 
God? 

Jesus replied: 

This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom 
he hath sent. 

Faith alone gives us the right to draw near to God 
at all : 

Heb. 11:6: 

But without faith it is impossible to please him [God]. 

These verses contain in simple formula the complete 
solution of the relation of works and faith. 

4. Show them from the Scriptures that such a belief In the 
meritorious si^ificance of good works makes Toid, ignores, 
neutralizes, the death of Christ as the ground of our sal- 
vation. 

This truth is contained in such passages as Gal. 
2 :21 : 



90 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

I do not frustrate [or make void] the grace of God : 
for if righteousness come by the law, then Christ is 
dead in vain [or for naught]. 

5. Giye illnstrations from the Scriptures of good, moral men, 
who neyertheless needed a change of heart, who needed 
saying faith in Jesns Christ, as a fitness for inheritance in 
the kingdom of God. 

Cornelius (Acts 10:1-6 and 11:11-14) and Paul 
(Phil. 3:4-8) furnish very striking illustrations of the 
necessity of something more than mere human goodness 
and morality to fit a man for entrance into the king- 
dom of heaven. Jesus' own words are very emphatic 
in this connection : "Except a man may be born again 
[or from above], he cannot see the kingdom of God." 



THE BACKSLIDEE 



CHAPTER IX. 

V. THE BACKSLIDER. 

THE backslider is at once the easiest and yet the 
hardest case to deal with, according as he is 
penitent or impenitent. 

By the backslider is meant the one who, having be- 
gun the Christian life, has given it up for one reason 
or another; the one who, having put his hand to the 
plough, has turned back. 

"Backslider" is not a New Testament word, and oc- 
curs but once in the Old Testament (Prov. 14:14). 

How To Deal With Them. 

1. Remember that all professing backsliders are not so in 
reality. Some backsliders haye neyer really slid forward. 
The following passages clearly show this: 

1 John 2 :19 : 

They went out from us, but they were not of us ; for if 
they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued 
with us ; but they went out, that they might be made 
manifest that they were not all of us. 

2 Pet. 2 :20-22 : 

For if, after they have escaped the pollutions of the 
world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour 
Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein, and over- 
come, the latter end is worse with them than the begin- 
ning. 

For it had been better for them not to have known the 
way of righteousness, than, after they have known it, 
to turn from the holy commandment delivered unto them. 

But it is happened unto them according to the true 
proverb, The dog is turned to his own vomit again ; and 
the sow that was washed to her wallowing in the mire. 

Compare also Matt 13:20, 21; Mark 4:16, 17; Heb. 
10 :38, 39. 

93 



94 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

Many, like Jesus, tasted, but did not drink (Matt. 
27:34). 

It may not be so easy as we think for the righteous 
man to go out of his way to backslide. 

Job 17:9: 

The righteous also shall hold on his way, and he that 
hath clean hands shall be stronger and stronger. 

2. Seek to ascertain the cause of the backsliding. 

This is important, because the very thing which led 
the inquirer to backslide may be the very thing which 
is keeping him from coming back. All such obstacles 
must be removed. Some of the causes of backsliding 
are as follows: 

(a) Mis-treatment ty, or mconsistencies of Chris- 
tians. 

Meet this difficulty with 
Jer. 2 :5 : 

Thus saith the ILord, What iniquity have your fathers 
found in me, that they are gone far from me, and have 
walked after vanity, and are become vain? 

Isa. 5 :4 : 

What could have been done more to my vineyard, that 
I have not done in it? wherefore, when I looked that it 
should bring forth grapes, brought it forth wild grapes? 

Ask what wrong God has done to them ? Why should 
they treat God so? 

(J)) It may he the indulgence of Jcnoivn sin, or the 
neglect of the means of grace, or some icorldly alliance 
that is the cause of the backslidden condition^ 

Be sure to find out the cause. Unless you do, you 
cannot deal with the case effectually. 

In your dealing with backsliders, you will find they 
fall into two classes : the penitent and the impenitent. 



TEE BACKSLIDER 95 



The Penitent Backslider. 

By this term we mean the backslider who is sorry 
for his sin, and desires to return, even though he may 
feel that he may not be received. 

1. Show God's willingness to receive all who come back 
to Him. 

Luke 15:11-24 — The parable of the Prodigal Son. 
Probably no other part of the Scriptures is so appli- 
cable and so winning as this parable. Use also : 

Jer. 3:12, 13: 

Go and proclaim these words toward the north, and 
say, Return, thou backsliding Israel, saith the Lord ; 
and I will not cause mine anger to fall upon you : for I 
am merciful, saith the Lord, and I will not keep auger 
forever. 

Only acknowledge thine iniquity, that thou hast trans- 
gressed against the Lord thy God, and hast scattered 
thy ways to the strangers under every green tree, and ye 
have not obeyed my voice, saith the Lord. 

Mark 16:7: 

But go your way, tell his disciples and Peter that he 
goeth before you into Galilee : there shall ye see him, as 
He said unto you. 

Eecount the story of Peter's denial, then show by this 
passage how Christ sent a special message of forgive- 
ness to him. 

2. Show what God demands in order to effect restoration. 

2 Chron. 7 :14 : 

If my people, which are called by my name, shall humble 
themselves, and pray, and seek my face, and turn from 
their wicked ways ; then will I hear from heaven, and 
will forgive their sin, and will heal their land. 

1 John 1 :9 : 

If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive 
us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. 

Also Jer. 3 :12-14 ; Hosea 14 :l-4. 

These passages show the inquirer how to come back 
to God. Obeyed, they bring back the sense and con- 



96 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNINa 

sciousness of a right relationship with God. 

3. It will be well to gire instructions as to how to grow in 
grace, and not backslide again. See page 107. 

The Impenitent Backslider. 

Sometimes backsliders are indifferent and obstinate, 
and must be dealt with accordingly. This class does not 
manifest any sorrow for their backsliding; neither do 
they exhibit any desire to return to the Lord from whom 
they have wandered. Possibly the best method of deal- 
ing with such inquirers is to show them the awful sin 
they have committed in not continuing to follow the 
Lord, and what are the awful, fatal, and inevitable con- 
sequences now, and, most of all, in the world to come. 

The following references reveal these heart-searching 
truths : 

Jer. 2 :13, 19 : 

For my people have committed two evils ; they have 
forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed 
them out cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no 
water. 

Thine own wickedness shall correct thee, and thy 
backslidings shall reprove thee ; know therefore and see 
that it is an evil thing and bitter, that thou hast for- 
saken the Lord thy God, and that my fear is not in thee, 
saith the Lord God of hosts. 

1 Kings 11 :9 : 

And the Lord was angry with Solomon, because his 
heart was turned from the Lord God of Israel, which had 
appeared unto him twice. 

Amos 4 ;11 : 

I have overthrown some of you, as God overthrew 
Sodom and Gomorrah, and ye were as a firebrand plucked 
out of the burning : yet have ye not returned unto me, 
saith the Lord. 

Also 2 Peter 2 :20-22 ; Luke 11 :24, 26 



THE FEAEFUL AND DESPAIRING 



CHAPTER X. 

VI. THE FEAKFUL AND DESPAIRING. 
J, <*I am afraid I will be persecuted if I become a Christian.^ 

THIS objection is more general than we might, on 
first thought, think. There are, doubtless, many 
people who now are not Christians, who would speedily 
become such if only they thought they were strong 
enough to brave the laugh, the sneer, and the rebuff 
of their worldly companions. Again, this objection has 
great weight in deciding the question of a man's ability 
to courageously face ridicule, which, in itself, is a 
greater test of heroism than the feat of a Hobson or 
a Funston. Many a man who has never hesitated 
to take the front rank and face the cannon's mouth in 
the day of battle, has failed ignominiously when the 
opportunity to witness for Christ has presented itself 
to him in the line of his everyday duty. 

We must not, therefore, treat this excuse lightly. 
On the contrary, we must endeavor to point the in- 
quirer to Him who giveth strength to them that are 
weak and fearful. 

The best method to pursue in this case is to use such 
passages of Scripture as show the folly of the ^'fear 
of man" and the blessedness, both here and hereafter, 
for those who boldly confess Him before the world. 

This objection may be summed up under four di- 
visions : 

(a) Those tcJio are afraid of the ridicule of their 
companions. 

99 



100 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

Show theni that they are not to be afraid of the ridi- 
cule of man ; they must seek to covet the approval of 
God. Only fatal consequences can result from the fear 
of man. 

Prov. 29:25: 

The fear of man brin^eth a snare; but whoso putteth 
his trust in the Lord shall be safe. 

This passage shows that the fear of man involves 
men in danger and misfortune. The word "fear" in 
this verse means the regulation of one's conduct by the 
opinion of morally untrained men. To thus regulate 
one's life is to fall into a snare which involves the loss 
of the soul. (Also use Prov. 13:20.) 

Luke 12 A, 5 : 

And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them 
that kill the body, and after that have no more that 
they can do. 

But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear : Fear 
him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into 
hell ; yea, I say unto you, Fear him. 

Here we are shown whom we should fear. We 
should fear God, who has the greatest power. 

Use also Isa. 51 :7, 8, 12 ; Jer. 1 :8, 17 ; Mark 8 :38. 

(1)) Those who are afraid they will lose their friends 
if they 'become Christians. 

Ofttimes men do lose friends when they become 
Christians. Without doubt this fear keeps many from 
accepting Christ. How shall we deal with them? In 
the following way : 

(1) Show the inquirer that such friends are not wor- 
thy of his company, for they are enemies of God. 

Any man who does not wish a Christian success is 
thereby constituted an enemy of God. This is dis- 
tinctly taught in James 4 :4 : 



TEE FEARFUL AND DESPAIRING 101 



Ye adulterers and adulteresses, know ye not that the 
friendship of the world is enmity with God? whoso- 
ever therefore will be a friend of the world is the enemy 
of God. 

(2) Show him that he gains a more worthy compan- 
ionship. 

In the first place, he gains the companionship of 
Christ, and then the companionship of Christian people. 
The inquirer, therefore, is called upon to make a choice 
of his company. Who would not be willing to give up 
an earthly friend for a heavenly Friend — to surrender 
the human for the divine, the temporal for the eternal ? 

(3) Show him that a special blessing is pronounced 
upon those who choose the righteous as their compan- 
ions. 

Psa. 1:1, 2: 

Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel 
of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor 
sitteth in the seat of the scornful. 

But his delight is in the law of the Lord ; and in his 
law doth he meditate day and night. 

(c) ^^I will he persecuted ty my friends if I 'become 
a Christian/^ 

Do not deny this statement, for it is true. 

(1) Show the inquirer that this is what is to be ex- 
pected. 

2 Tim. 3:12: 

Yea, and all that will live godly in Christ Jesus shall 
suffer persecution. 

This passage teaches that everyone bent on living 
godly in this world is bound to suffer persecution. On 
the other hand, the inquirer may be shown : 

(2) That it is a great honor and privilege to suffer 
for Christ. 

Acts 5 :40, 41 : 

And to him they agreed : and when they had called 
the apostles and beaten them, they commanded that 



102 PERSONAL SOUL-WINXING 

they should not speak in the name of Jesus, and let 
them go. 

And they departed from the presence of the council, 
rejoicing that they were counted worthy to sufEer shame 
for his name. 

Also 1 Pet. 2 :20, 21. 

(3) The result of suffering with Christ. 
Matt. 5 :10-12 : 

Blessed are they which are persecuted for righteous- 
ness' sake : for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. 

Blessed are ye, when men shall revile you, and per- 
secute you, and shall say all manner of evil against 
you falsely, for my sake. 

Rejoice, and be exceeding glad : for great is your re- 
ward in heaven : for so persecuted they the prophets 
which were before you. 

When men revile us and abuse us, we should exult 
and leap for joy. 

(4) Show the future reward. 
2 Tim. 2 :12 : 

If we suffer, we shall also reign with him : if we deny 
him he also will deny us. 

(d) Show the inquirer the possitilltij of liis being 
able to influence his companions for Christ. 

This is a phase of the subject which is often over- 
looked. 

2. "I am afraid that if I start to he a Christian, I shall be 
nnahle to keep it up; I am so weak." 

The way to deal with, this class of inquirers is to 
use such passages of Scripture as shall set forth the 
fact that the God whom we serve is able to deliver 
us in every hour of temptation ; that our "standing in 
grace" does not depend upon our strength, but upon 
God's: that it is the will of Christ that we should be 
more than conquerors over the world, the flesh, and 
the devil. 



THE FEARFUL AND DESPAIRING 103 
Jude 24 : 

Now unto him that is able to keep you from falling, 
and to present you faultless before the presence of his 
glory with exceeding joy. 

This passage gives us the assurance that God is able 
to keep us from "stumbling.'' (R. V.) We do not keep 
ourselves; God is our keeper. 

1 Cor. 10:13: 

There hath no temptation taken you but such as is 
common to man : but God is faithful, who will not suffer 
you to be tempted above that ye are able ; but will with 
the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may 
be able to bear it. 

What a grand promise this is ! God assures us that 
we shall never be tempted above what we are able, 
through His grace, to bear; that a way of escape will 
always be planned for us by Him. 

The cross that He gave may be heavy, 

But it ne'er outweighs His grace; 
The storm that I feared may surround me, 
But it ne'er excludes His face. 

With such a glorious promise as this who would fear 
to venture on Christ? 

Phil. 1:6: 

Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath 
begun a good work in you will perform it until the day 
of Jesus Christ. 

What a confidence! God will never leave the work 
He has begun in any soul unfinished. He who begins 
the work completes it also. A finished, completed re- 
demption is the possible possession of the humblest soul 
that commits itself to the great Father in heaven. 

Isa. 41 :10, 13, 14 : 

Fear thou not ; for I am with thee ; be not dismayed ; 
for I am thy God ; I will strengthen thee ; yea, I will 
help thee ; yea, I will uphold thee with the right hand 
of my righteousness. 



104 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

For I the Lord thy God will hold thy right hand, say- 
ing unto thee, Fear not ; I will help thee. 

Fear not, thou worm Jacob, and ye men of Israel ; I 
will help thee, saith the Lord, and thy redeemer, the 
Holy One of Israel. 

Note here that God takes hold of our right hand with 
His right hand. Who is able to plnck us out of His 
great, strong, mighty, omnipotent hand? Not man, 
nor angel, nor devil. Why, then, are we fearful as to 
what the issues of our trusting in Him will be? 

2 Tim. 1 :12 : 

Nevertheless I am not ashamed : for I know whom I 
have believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep 
that which I have committed unto him against that day. 

This verse is the Christian's safety deposit vault. 
When the soul commits itself to the Lord Jesus Christ 
for safe keeping, there is no fear but that He will 
guard it safely. It is a safe investment. 

The following passages also can be used to great 
advantage : 

2 Cor. 12:9, 10; John 17:12; Deut. 33:27; John 10: 
27-29. 

What great passages of Scripture these are! Who 
can measure the length, the breadth, the depth, the 
height of their meaning? And yet all their fullness of 
meaning is for the encouragement of the timid, weak, 
and fearful disciple. 

What have I to fear, with my Lord so near, 
Leaning on the 'Everlasting Arms'? 

3, **I am afraid Jesus will not receive me." 

One of the objections frequently urged against be- 
coming a Christian is the above. I have always found 
the following a very good verse to use with this class : 



THE FEARFUL AND DESPAIRING 105 
John 6 :37 : 

All that the Father giveth me shall come to me ; and 
him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. 

Use it like this : '^Who is it that Jesus will not easi 
out?" "Him that cometh." "And if you come, what 
does Jesus say He will do?" "Receive me." "Well, 
then, all you have to do is to believe His Word and 
come to Him." 

Use also : 

Rev. 22 :17 : 

And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let 
him that heareth say, Come. And let him that is 
athirst come. And whosoever will, let him take the 
water of life freely. 

Rom. 10:13: 

For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord 
shall be saved. 

John 3 :16 : 

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only 
begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not 
perish, but have everlasting life. 

Ask : "Whom does ^whosoever' mean ?" If the word 
means anything at all, it means "anyone." So anyone 
may come. 

By using the narratives of the Sinful Woman (Luke 
7:37-50), and the Prodigal Son (Luke 15:11-32), you 
can illustrate God's willingness to receive sinners. In 
the following — 

Luke 15 :2 : 

And the Pharisees and scribes murmured, saying, 
This man receiveth sinners, and eateth with them. 

we have the definite and explicit statement that, "this 
man [Jesus] receiveth sinners." Although this was 
the statement of the enemies of Christ, it is nevertheless 
true of Him, probably doubly so because of this fact. 



106 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

4. "I have tried before and failed." 

We need to have a great deal of patience in dealing 
with this class. It is very much harder to try to live a 
Christian life after one has tried and failed than to 
try for the first time. The Christian worker must by 
no means overlook this fact. Deal with this class in 
the following wa 

(a) Assert the possiMlity of success. 
To do this, use 2 Cor. 9 :8, lO : 

And God is able to make all grace abound toward you: 
that ye, always having all sufficiency in all things, may 
abound to every good work : 

Now he that ministereth seed to the sower both minister 
bread for your food, and multiply your seed sown, and 
increase the fruits of your righteousness : 

Yerse 8 shows that God has the power to enable us 
to make a success of the Christian life, and, therefore, 
shows its possibility. Verse 10 shows us that God will 
do it, and, therefore, asserts its reality. 

(1)) Ascertain the cause of failure. 

Many professing Christians have failed in the Chris- 
tian life simply because they have not lived it, or they 
did not start right. Ask the following questions : 

(1) Did you absolutely trust in Christ and in His 
finished work for your salvation? Did you depend 
upon faith or upon feeling? Did you get a clear vision 
of Christ as your sin-bearer? (Isa. 53:6.) 

(2) Did you absolutely surrender yourself to Christ? 
or did you keep back something? — did you retain any 
idol in your heart? Anything less than a full sur- 
render means failure. 

(3) Did you confess Christ publicly? To be 
ashamed of Christ is a stepping-stone to failure. An 
open confession lets men know where you stand. Many 
a man has failed in the Christian life because he has 
failed to let people know where he stood. 



TEE FEARFUL AND DESPAIRING 107 

(4) Did you pray constantly? Prayer is to the soul 
what breathing is to the body — it is the Christian's 
vital breath. 

(5) Did you study the Bible daily? Here is the 
fundamental cause of failure. There must be a daily 
study of the Bible if there is to be growth in grace 
(Acts 17:11; 1 Pet. 2:2). 

(6) Did you go to work for Christ ? Rust is the wit- 
ness of failure; idleness is the devil's workshop. The 
probabilities are that, unless we seek to lead others to 
Christ, we will lose our grip on Christ ourselves. 

It may be found from the above questions that the 
inquirer has tried to live a Christian life, but not the 
Christian life. 

(c) Give instructions as to hoiv to make a success 
of the Christian life. 

It is much better to lead one soul into a place of suc- 
cess in the Christian life than to deal with half a dozen 
in an inadequate manner. We must realize the danger 
of backsliding. Satan is active in every man's life, 
more so after a man's conversion than before. The fol- 
lowing scriptures will be helpful in pointing the way 
of success : 

(1) Make a full surrender (Prov. 12:1, 14, 20-22). 

(2) Prayer (Luke 18:1; Matt. 26:41). 

(3) Constant reading of the Bible (Acts 17:11; 20: 
32; 1 Pet. 2:2). 

(4) Faithfulness to the church and its ordinances 
(Heb. 10:25; Acts 2 :41-47). 

(5) Go to work for Christ (John 1:41-45; Matt. 20: 
1-16). 

5. "I have sinned away the day of grace." 

Just what the inquirer means by this statement is 
not always clear. This the worker must find out. 
Whatever may be meant by it, a sad spiritual condition 



108 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

is thereby indicated, and very tender and delicate 
treatment is needed. 

(a) Find out tchat he means hy the statement. 

Usually the inquirer means that he has gone by "Past 
Kedemption Point" ; sinned so grievously, willfully, per- 
sistently against light and knowledge that there is no 
further hope for him. 

These statements are usually made because of his 
misunderstanding of some passages of Scripture — the 
following, for example: 

Gen. 6 :3 : 

My Spirit stiall not always strive with man. 

He infers from this passage that there is a time 
when the Spirit of God ceases to strive with a man, 
and leaves him to his doom. This is a false interpre- 
tation, for this verse deals with the race and not with 
an individual; again, it deals with the continuation, 
and not with the cutting off — "his days shall be a hun- 
dred and twenty years" — of the probation period of 
the human race; indeed, the length of the life of the 
individual is not in the question here; and, further, 
the verse indicates that nothing but the cessation of 
the human race would put an end to the striving of the 
Spirit. 

Heb. 6 :4-6 : 



For it is impossible for those who were once enlight- 
ened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were 
made partakers of the Holy Ghost, 

And have tasted the good word of God, and the 
powers of the world to come, 

If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto 
repentance ; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son 
of God afresh, and put him to an open shame. 



THE FEARFUL AND DESPAIRING 109 



Heb. 10 :26 : 

For if we sin willfully after that we have received the 
knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacri- 
fice for sins. 

These scriptures also are used to buttress the cause 
of the despairing. A careful reading of these passages 
in the Revised Version would remove this erroneous 
interpretation. The first of these two scriptures 
teaches that it is "impossible to renew" those described 
in these verses, not under antf condition, but only '^'the 
while they are crucifying the Son of God afresh/' etc. 
How can you save any man who is deliberately turning 
his back on the cross of Christ? The latter passage 
(10:26) does not teach that a man who was once a 
Christian and has sinned willfully since he became such 
has no further hope of forgiveness. It teaches that, 
if a man who has once seen in the cross of Christ his 
only hope of salvation, deliberately turns away from 
that cross, then there is ^'no other/' or "any more a 
[or another] sacrifice for sin." 

In dealing with this class be very slow to believe that 
such a condition as being beyond hope, actually ex- 
ists — at least in a soul that is at all concerned about 
the matter. 

(t) SucJi passages as the following may J)e used to 
show that all are welcome to come to Christ. 

John 6 :37 : 

All that the Father glveth me shall come to me ; and 
him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. 

Rev. 22 :17 : 

And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him 
that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst 
come. And whosoever will, let him take the water of 
life freely. 

Also Rom. 10:13: 



110 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

If the inquirer points to Heb. 12 :17 : 

For ye know how that afterward, when he would have 
inherited the blessing, he was rejected : for he found no 
place of repentance, though he sought it carefully 
with tears. 

as indicating the possibility of there being a time when 
a man cannot rei)ent, you may draw his attention to 
the fact that this verse has nothing to say with refer- 
ence to a man's relation to God; it speaks only of 
Esau's inability to change the mind of his father with 
reference to the stolen blessing. 

6. "I liaye committed the unpardonable sin — the sin against 
the Holy Ghost." 

This excuse is based upon the following passages : 
Matt. 12 :30-32 : 

He that is not with me is against me ; and he that 
gathereth not with me scattereth abroad. 

Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and 
blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men : but the blas- 
phemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven 
unto men. 

And whosoever speaketh a word against the Son of 
man, it shall be forgiven him : but whosoever speaketh 
against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, 
neither in this world, neither in the world to come. 

Compare Mark 3 :28-30 : 
1 John 5:16: 

If any man see his brother sin a sin which is not 
unto death, he shall ask, and he shall give him life for 
them that sin not unto death. There is a sin unto death : 
I do not say that he shall pray for it. 

(a) Try to find out from the inquirer what he mecms 
'by the sin against the Holy Ghost. 

You will find that in almost every case he will not be 
able to define it. It might seem therefore as though 
it were not necessary to deal with a sin that is not 
definable. And possibly that is right. It is much 
better to get the inquirer's mind away from the sin he 



THE FEARFUL AND DESPAIRING 111 

thinks he has committed and fix it on those passages 
of Scripture which hold out forgiveness for "all man- 
ner of sin and blasphemy." 

1 Tim. 1 :15, 16, with 1 :13 : 

This is a faithful saying, and worthy of all accept- 
ation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save 
sinners ; of whom I am chief. 

Howbeit for this cause I obtained mercy, that in me 
first Jesus Christ might show forth all longsuflfering, 
for a pattern to them which should hereafter believe on 
him to life everlasting. 

Who was before a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and 
injurious : but I obtained mercy, because I did it igno- 
rantly in unbelief. 

These verses show that, although Paul was a blas- 
phemer, he nevertheless obtained forgiveness. Further, 
his forgiveness is an encouragement to all others, who, 
having seen the awfulness of the sin of blasphemy, de- 
sire to repent. 

1 John 5 :16 (above) does not speak of a specific sin 
for which there is no forgiveness. The Revised Version 
leaves out the word "a," and translates the verse, 
^'There is sin unto death." This might seem to imply 
that this sin is a state rather than an act. 

(h) Use the following scriptures to show the willing- 
ness of Christ to receive and forgive all those who come 
to Him. 

John 6:37; Eev. 22:17; Acts 13:38, 39; Rom. 10:13. 

(For full quotation of these passages see under 5, 6.) 

7, "It is too late now for me to become a Christian.*' 

This excuse is based on a wrong interpretation of 
Proverbs 1 :24-31. Emphasize, the fact that those who 
call, in these verses, are calling from wrong motives. 

Show them from the following passages that it is not 
too late; that, on the contrary, it is the proper time. 



112 PERSOXAL SOUL-WIXXIXa 



2 Cor. 6 :2 : 

For he saith, I have heard thee in a time accepted, 
and in the day of salvation have I succoured thee ; be- 
hold, now is the accepted time ; behold, now is the day 
of salvation. 

Heb. 4 :T : 

Again, he limiteth a certain day, saying in David. To- 
day, after so long a time ; as it is said. To-day if ye 
wiil hear his voice, harden not your hearts. 

Also Deut. 4 :29-31. 



THE PE0CEA8TINAT0R 



CHAPTER XI. 

VII. THE PROCRASTINATOR. 

THOSE who desire to put off their salvation until 
another time form a very numerous class, and 
one very difficult to deal with. There is, seemingly, to 
the one offering it, less guilt connected with this ex- 
cuse than, for example, with one that borders on the 
nature of unbelief. For this reason many people put 
off their salvation until it is too late. Either they are 
cut off suddenly or they are so racked with pain or 
lulled by drugs that the time they had set aside for 
settling the affairs of the soul does not come in a pro- 
pitious way. It is with them as it was with Nebuchad- 
nezzar's image : the lower the members, the coarser the 
metal ; the farther off the time, the more unfit. ^'Today 
is the golden opportunity ; tomorrow will be the silver 
season; next day but the brazen one; and so one, till 
at last I shall come to the toes of clay, and be turned 
to dust.'^ The Biblical Treasury furnishes the follow- 
ing story : 

"A minister of the Gospel determined on one occa- 
sion to preach on the text, ^Now is the accepted time ; 
now is the day of salvation.' Whilst in his study 
thinking, he fell asleep, and dreamed that he was car- 
ried into hell, and set down in the midst of a conclave 
of lost spirits. They were assembled to devise means 
whereby they might get at the souls of men. One rose 
and said, 'I will go to the earth and tell men that the 
Bible is all a fable, that it is not divinely appointed of 
God.' No, that would not do. Another said, ^Let me 
go. I will tell men that there is no God, no Saviour, 

115 



116 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

no heaven, no hell'; and at the last words a fiendish 
smile lighted upon all their countenances. 'No, that 
will not do; we cannot make men believe that.' Sud- 
denly one arose, and with a wise mien, like the serpent 
of old, suggested, 'No, I will journey to the world of 
men, and tell them that there is a God, that there is a 
Saviour, that there is a heaven, — yes, and a hell, too, — 
but I will tell them there is no hurry; tomorrow will 
do; it will be even as today.' And they sent him." 
This excuse assumes different forms : 

1. '*I want to get established in business first: after that 
I will be a Christian." 

The following passages are good to use with this 
class : 

Matt. 6 :33 : 

But seek ye first the kingdom of God. and his risrhteous- 
ness ; and all these things shall be added unto you. 

Show from this verse that the first business of every 
man is to settle his interests with reference to his re- 
lation to the kingdom of God. 

Also Luke 12 :16-21— The Kich Fool. 

This parable shows the utter folly as well as the 
awful doom of those who seek to be established in busi- 
ness before religion. What did his being established 
in business profit him? He "gained the world," but 
"lost his soul." Apply this story to the case you have 
in hand something like this: '"Suppose you do get es- 
tablished in business, what assurance have you, more 
than this rich fool had, that you will have the time, or 
even the desire to turn to God and seek for salvation ?" 

James 4 :13-17 : 

Go to now. ye that say. Today or tomorrow we will 
go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy 
and sell, and get gain : 



THE PROCRASTINATOR 117 

Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. 
For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that ap- 
peareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away. 

For that ye ought to say. If the Lord will, we shall live, 
and do this, or that. 

But now ye re.ioice in your boastings : all such re- 
joicing is evil. 

Therefore to him that knoweth to do good, and doeth 
it not, to him it is sin. 

Show from this that a man may be cut off right in 
the midst of his seeking to establish himself in busi- 
ness ; that a really thoughtful man ought to look after 
the interests of his soul at once, inasmuch as he "knows 
not what shall be on the morrow." God should be put 
first — '4f God will/' etc. ; not last, as in the case of the 
rich fool. 

2. "I will wait until I get older, then I will become a Chris- 
tian." 

Use Eccl. 12 :1, 2 with 2 Sam. 19 :35, and Heb. 3 :13 
(given in order .below) : 

Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth, 
while the evil days come not, nor the years draw nigh, 
when thou shalt say, I have no pleasure in them ; 

While the sun, or the light, or the moon, or the stars, 
be not darkened, nor the clouds return after the rain. 

I am this day fourscore years old ; and can I discern 
between good and evil? can thy servant taste what I 
eat or what I drink? can I hear any more the voice 
of singing men and singing women? wherefore then 
should thy servant be yet a burden unto my lord the 
king? 

But exhort one another daily, while it is called Today ; 
lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness 
of sin. 

These verses show clearly that the longer one waits 
before giving his heart to God, the harder his heart 
becomes, and the more difficult it is for him to become 
a Christian. The young and tender years are the years 
w^herein one should seek to know the Lord. The 
worker may endeavor tO' show the contemptibleness of 
throwing away the best years of one's life in the service 
of Satan and sin, and then offering the very end of it^ 
the which, probably, is of no use to him or anybody 
else, to God. If he will not give himself to God in 



118 PERSOXAL SOUL-WINXIXG 

"the green tree,'' the odds are against his doing it "in 
the dry." Why have a life wasted and a soul saved, 
when YOU can have both life and soul saved and useful 
in the service of the kingdom of God? 

3. ^ am determined to hecome a Christian before I die." 

Show from the following passages that this position 
is a false one, and for these reasons : 

No man knows when he is going to die; no man 
"knoweth the day of his death.'' 

Prov. 29 :1 : 

He. that being often reproved hardeneth his neck, shall 
suddenly be destroyed, and that without remedy. 

Also Job 34 :20, and Luke 12 :20 ; James 4 :13-17. 

He may die "suddenly," "in a moment," "this night." 
Who knows? What utter folly, therefore, to put off 
so important a matter until so uncertain a date. 
Draw the attention to the sudden deaths occurring 
around him daily. Ask him if he does not recall such 
within his own knowledge? 

Again, this position is a false one because it assumes 
that a man will surely call, or feel like calling upon 
God in the last hours of his life, which, of course, is 
by no means the case. This may be proved by referring 
to the story of the impenitent thief (Luke 23:39), who 
used his last breath to rail upon Jesus Christ. It is 
all very well for people to draw our attention to the 
fact that the dying thief was saved in the last hour; 
they seem to forget that the other dying thief was lost 
in the last hour. The probabilities are that we will 
die as we have lived. Deathbed repentances are by no 
means to be depended upon. Every pastor will bear 
testimony to the truth of this statement. Kepentances 
during the last hours of life are prompted by fear very 
largely — a fear shown to be anything but the right 



THE PROCBASTINATOR 119 

kind of fear, and soon forgotten in case the sick person 
is raised up from what seemed for a time to be his 
deathbed. In these days of anaesthetics it is almost 
impossible for one to die in possession of his full senses. 
How then can a man attend to the matters of the soul 
which require thoughtful attention? And then, sud- 
den death may overtake us, and thus we may be robbed 
of a deathbed upon which to repent. 

Use the following passages, and question the inquirer 
on the truth contained in them touching his particular 
case: 

Isa. 55:6: 

Seek ye the Lord while he may be found, call ye upon 
him while he is near. 

Luke 13 :24, 25 : 

strive to enter in at the strait gate ; for many, I 
say unto you, will seek to enter in, and shall not be 
able. 

When once the master of the house is risen up, and 
hath shut to the door, and ye begin to stand without, 
and to knock at the door, saying, Lord, Lord, open unto 
us ; and he shall answer and say unto you, I know you 
not whence ye are. 

Use also, if necessary, Prov. 1:28 (context, vs. 24- 
31) ; 2 Cor. 6 :2 ; Prov. 27 :1 ; Heb. 4 :7 ; 12 :17. 

There is a time, we know not when, 

A place, we know not where; 
Which marks the destiny of men 

To glory or despair. 

There is a line, by us unseen, 

Which crosses every path. 
Which marks the boundary between 

God's mercy and his wrath. 

To pass that limit is to die, 

To die as if by stealth; 
It does not dim the beaming eye. 

Nor pale the glow of health. 

The conscience may be still at ease. 

The spirit light and gay; 
And that which pleases still may please. 

And care be thrust away. 



120 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

But on that foreh'ead God hath set 

Indelibly a mark; 
Unseen by man, for man as yet, 

Is blind and in the dark. 

He feels perchance that all is well 

And every fear is calmed; 
He lives, he dies, he wakes in hell. 

Not only doomed, but damned! 

O, where is that mysterious line 

That may by men be crossed. 
Beyond which God himself hath sworn, 

That he who goes is lost? 

An answer from the skies repeats, 

"Ye who from God depart," 
TODAY, O hear His voice, 

TODAY repent and harden not your heart. 

— Joseph Addison Alexander. 



THE FAULT-FINDnG 



CHAPTER Xn. 



VIII. THE FAULT-FINDING. 

EVER since the days when the Apostle Paul cried 
out, "Is God unrighteous?" or "Is there unright- 
eousness with God?" have some of the sons of men been 
answering aflBrmatively the question which the apostle 
answered negatively. "God is not unrighteous," and 
men must be made to understand this. We must not, as 
Job's friends did, attribute folly to God. We must 
say to Him. "Arise, O God, plead Thine own cause: 
remember how foolish man reproacheth Thee daily." 
Yet, it is true, that these gainsayers, these men "who 
speak evil of the things they understand not," must be 
dealt with and reproved by the Christian worker. God 
beseeches men through us. 

This general class of objectors states its case in 
varied aspects, viz. : 

Those Who Find Fault With God. 

1. ^It is unjnst of God to create men and then condemn 
tbem." 

What shall we say to this charge against God? and 
how shall we answer it ? "To the law and to the testi- 
mony," we must resort for our weapons, for this war- 
fare is not carnal but spiritual. We must take "the 
sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God." 

(a) Use such passages as show God's purpose in 
creation. 

123 



124 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 



Even every one that is called by my name : for I have 
created him for my glory, I have formed him ; yea, I 
have made him. 

Also Rev. 4 :11 ; Psa. 102 :18, and Isa. 65 :18. 

It is very clearly stated in these passages that God 
did not create man in order to damn him, but, on the 
contrary, that he might live to be a perpetual praise 
and find unending glory and blessing in the presence 
of God. Everlasting joy and bliss, therefore, char- 
acterize the creative purposes of God for man. 

(h) Show from the Scriptures tlmt all God's deal- 
ings with man point to His declared intention and de- 
sire that man sJwuld 'be saved, not lost. 

Ezek. 33 :11 : 

Say unto them, As I live, saith the Lord God, I have 
no pleasure in the death of the wicked ; but that the 
wicked turn from his way and live : turn ye, turn ye 
from your evil ways ; for why will ye die, O house of 
Israel? 

John 3 :16, 17 ; 2 Pet. 3 :9, and also Matt. 23 :37. 

Can God's attitude of loving solicitude for man's 
eternal salvation he more clearly and earnestly de- 
clared than in these words? Does it look as though 
God wanted to damn or to save men? Consider the 
price the Father paid, the sufferings the Son endured, 
that man might be saved from eternal despair, and then 
understand how awfully wicked it is to charge God 
with such injustice. 

(c) Show them that, if they are eternally lost, it is 
because of their willful rejection of God's way of life 
as revealed in the work of Christ. 

Matt. 23 :37 : 

O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that klllest the prophets, 
and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often 
would I have gathered thy children together, even as a 



TEE FAULT-FINDING 125 

hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye 
would not ! 

Also John 5:40; 2 Thess. 2:12, and Matt. 25:41. 

We learn from these passages that, if men are lost, 
it is because they deliberately choose to be lost, know- 
ingly and willfully rejecting their only hope of salva- 
tion in the redemption of Jesus Christ, Just as the 
rich man tumbled into hell, kicking the poor body of 
Lazarus which had been laid at his gate to keep him 
from such a doom, so the man who has the misfortune 
to awake and find himself among the lost in the other 
world will realize that he finds himself in hell because 
he deliberately stumbled over the crucified body of 
Jesus Christ, placed, as it were, at the very mouth of 
hell, to keep him out of such a place of torment. It 
is not God's creative purpose, but sinful man's perver- 
sion, that is the cause of his condemnation. 

2. ^'God lias not clearly reyealed Himself to man.'' 

There are some people who say, ''Why has not God 
clearly revealed Himself to man so that he may know 
who and what God is, and what He expects of His 
creatures? An earthly father would not punish his 
child for not doing his will when he had not had that 
will made known to him, nor should God." Nor does 
He. God never asks the impossible from His children. 
He asks obedience up to the light they possess. 

(a) Show the ohjector that God has revealed Him- 
self and His will to mein, 

Rom. 1:18-20: 

For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against 
all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold 
the truth in unrighteousness ; 

Because that which may be known of God is manifest 
in them ; for God hath shewed it unto them. 

For the invisible things of him from the creation of 
the world are clearly seen, being understood by the 
things that are made, even his eternal power and God- 
head ; so that they are without excuse. 



126 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

Also 1 Oor. 2 :12 and John 1 :9. 

(h) God has revealed Himself to man in Christ. 

John 1 :18 : 

No man hath seen God at any time ; the only begotten 
Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared 
him. 

Also Matt. 11 :27 ; 2 Cor. 5 :19, and John 14 :9. 

(c) Show that sin and disobedience keep man in ig- 
norance of God. 

2 Cor. 4 :3, 4 : 

But if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost : 

In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds 

of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious 

gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine 

unto them. 

Also Rom. 1 :21, John 7 :17, and Isa. 59 :1, 2. 

x\fter all, our ignorance of God is due to our unlike- 
ness to Him. Our sins have hid His face from us. 
Not only is it true that ignorance is sin, but it is also 
true that sin is ignorance. 

(d) Show that willingness to ol)ey the will of God 
icill hring further revelation. 

John 7:17: 

If any man will do his will, he shall know of the doc- 
trine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of myself. 

Also Hosea 6:3. 

Those Who Find Fault With the Bible. 

Objection to the Word of God finds its expression 
in various ways : 

1. "The Bible is foolishness." 

In dealing with this class of objectors it is a good 
thing to say: "You are right, my friend, for that is 



THE FAULTFINDING 127 

just what the Bible itself says." Then you may find 
1 Cor. 1 :18, 23, 24 : 

For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish 
foolishness ; but unto us which are saved it is the power 
of God. 

But we preach Christ crucified, unto the Jews a stum- ^,„«— 

blingblock, and unto the Greeks foolishness. 

But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, 
Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God. 

Get him to read these verses for himself. Ask him, 
''To whom is the Bible and the preaching of the cross 
foolishness?" To those who are perishing in sin. To 
the one who receives it, it is "the power of God and 
the wisdom of God." 

Sbow him further, 1 Cor. 2 :14. 

Here it is the "natural," i. e., the soulish, fleshly, 
worldly, sinning man to whom the Bible is foolishness ; 
the fault is not with the Bible, but with the man's sin. 

By the use of Isa. 5 :24, show him the penalty of thus 
rejecting the Word of the Lord. 

2. "The Bible is full of contradictions." 

Ask him to show you one. You will find that the 
man who growls most about the contradictions in the 
Bible is not able to show you one. A Christian worker, 
in an inquiry room, was addressed thus by one of these 
blatant infidels : "Don't talk to me about your religion 
and your Bible, for I don't believe them. That Bible 
you have in your hand is full of contradictions; whj^ 
should I then believe it?" The worker feigned sur- 
prise and timidity, and said : "Well, that is news to 
me ; I am not aware that there are any contradictions 
in the Bible." "Yes, there are," said the infidel, wax- 
ing bold at the timidity of the worker and the increas- 
ing interest of the onlookers, "I could show you scores 
of them ; the Bible is full of them." This was just the 
point the worker desired to bring the infidel to in order 
to justly humiliate him. "Then," said the worker, with 



128 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

the suddenness and force of an avalanche, "yon can 
surely show me one/^ And suiting the action to the 
word, he handed the infidel the Bible, repeating the 
challenge, "You say there are scores of contradictions 
in the Bible, show me just one.'^ Suffice it to say, he 
could not. You can afford to challenge such an ob- 
jector with the same test. Even if there were contra- 
dictions in the Bible, such a man is not the one to be 
in possession of the knowledge. 

A good verse to use vfith such persons is, 2 Pet. 2 :12 : 

But these, as natural brute beasts, made to be taken 
.^^ and destroyed, speak evil of the things that they under- 

fcr stand not ; and shall utterly perish in their own cor- 

ruption. 

8. "The Bible is an impure book,'* 

It is difficult to know how one can make such a 
charge against a book that has done more for the pro- 
duction of purity of character than any other force in 
the world. The best and purest characters in the 
world are lovers and constant readers of the Bible. 

It is sufficient, so far as the allegation itself is con- 
cerned, to label it as a lie. But the inquirer must 
be dealt with. His sincerity may be instantly ques- 
tioned. He is in need of a straight talk. 

Show him Psa. 12:6, and 119:140: 

The words of the Lord are pure words : as silver tried 
in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. 
I^*-. Thy word is very pure : therefore thy servant loveth it. 

Also Prov. 30 :5. 

From these passages we learn that the Bible is a 
pure book — pure from the beginning to the end. 

It is a good thing to send an arrow of conviction 
into the soul of the objector, and show him where 
the real cause of the trouble lies. This may be done 
by using Prov. 30 :12. Also 



TEE FAULT-FINDING 129 



Titus 1 :15 : 



Unto the pure all things are pure: but unto them ^^ 

that are defiled and unbelieving is nothing pure; but 
even their mind and conscience is defiled. 

and 2 Pet. 2 :11, 12. 

The impurity lies not in the Bible, but in his own 
wicked heart. 

4. *<The Bible is a mere human book." 

One of the best passages in the Bible to use in deal- 
ing with this class is 

1 Thess. 2 :13 : 

For this cause also thank we God without ceasing, be- -.^ 

cause, when ye received the word of God which ye *^ 

heard of us, ye received it not as the word of men, but, 
as it is in truth, the word of God, which eflCectually 
worketh also in you that believe. 

It is here definitely stated that the Bible is not the 
word of man, but the Word of the living God. 

2 Pet. 1 :20, 21 : 

Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture <„„-- 

is of any private interpretation. "^^ 

For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of 
man : but holy men of God spake as they were moved 
by the Holy Ghost. 

It is clear from the context that this passage refers 
to the origin rather than to the exposition of the 
Scriptures. The Bible is not a mere product of the 
human mind. 

2 Tim. 3 :16 shows us that the Bible is the result of 
divine inbreathing. 

Those Who Find Fault With Christians and 
Church Members. 

One of the most frequent excuses offered in the in- 
quiry room is this one which finds its basis in the 



t^ 



130 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

inconsistency of professing Christians. It assumes 
various forms, as for example : 

1. "There are too many hypocrites in the church." 

How shall we meet this objection? Admit its truth, 
for it is undoubtedly true. Ofttimes the admission 
comes with such unexpectedness to the inquirer that 
he is at once disarmed. It may be well to tell him 
that, while we are sorry that there are hypocrites in 
the church, and that we are doing our best to put them 
out, yet, there is no more reason for his keeping out 
of the church on this account than for his staying in 
the world, for there are hypocrites in the world. 
Sometimes one finds that an objector is a member of 
some society or lodge; you may then ask him, if there 
are any hypocrites in it, and if so, why he does not 
leave the lodge. This reveals to him the inconsistency 
of his argument. 

Again, you may remind him that the existence of the 
false and counterfeit implies the existence of the true 
and genuine. The best, not the poorest Christians, 
should form the standard of judgment and comparison. 

(a) Show Mm that he has no right to judge others^ 
and that God will hold him responsible for so doing, 

Rom. 14 :4, 10 : 

Who art thou that judgest another man's servant? 
to his own master he standeth or falleth. Yea, he shall 
be holden up : for God is able to make him stand. 

But why dost thou judge thy brother? or why dost thou 
set at nought thy brother? for we shall all stand before 
the judgment seat of Christ. 

Also Rom. 2 :l-3. 

(h) Draw his attention to his own sin and inconsist- 
ency, and show him that God will hold him. respon- 
sible for that, and not for the inconsistencies of others. 



THE FAULT-FINDING 131 

Eom. 2 :1, 21-23 : 

Therefore thou art inexcusable, O man, whosoever 
thou art that judgest : for wherein thou judgest another, 
thou condemnest thyself ; for thou that judgest doest the 
same things. 

Thou therefore which teachest another, teachest thou 
not thyself V thou that preachest a man should not steal, 
dost thou steal? 

Thou that sayest a man should not commit adultery, 
dost thou commit adultery? thou that abhorrest idols, 
dost thou commit sacrilege? 

Thou that makest thy boast of the law, through break- 
ing the law dishonourest thou God? 

Also Matt. 7 :15 and Eom. 14 :12. 

It is very probable, as Rom. 2 :1 says, that he himself 
is guilty of the very sin of which he is accusing others. 

(c) Show him that, if he knows how Christians ought 
to live, God will hold him responsible for not living up 
to that light. 

Luke 12:47: 

And that servant, which knew his lord's will, and pre- XjL^.^y'^ 

pared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall *fi,*»^ 

be beaten with many stripes. 

Also Matt. 23:23. 

2. **Christians and church members do things I wonld not do.** 

It may be well to remind him that Christ, and not 
any church member, is the model after whom he is to 
pattern his life. A good passage for this purpose is 
John 21 :21, 22 : 

Peter seeing him, saith to Jesus, Lord, and what shall 
this man do? 

Jesus saith unto him. If I will that he tarry till I ^^ 

come, what is that to thee? follow thou me. 

Also Matt. 23 :10 and Jer. 2 :5. 

It may be well, in closing this case, to show the in- 
quirer the despicableness of such a fault-finding dispo- 
sition that leads him to pass over all the virtues and 



132 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

dwell upon the faults of Christians — not the strongest, 
but the weakest. A cat may be so intent upon watch- 
ing a hole for a mouse that it fails to see an elephant 
as it passes by. So a man may be so intent upon 
finding fault that he fails to see virtues. There are 
people "that make a man an offender for a word . . . 
and turn aside the just for a thing of nought'^ (Isa. 
29:21). Eemind him that it will profit him more to 
i^ spend a little time here, if necessary, with the hypo- 

crites in the church rather than to spend an eternity 
with them in hell ; for finally, when God shall separate 
the righteous — for he will certainly make that separa- 
tion some day — from the wicked, all hypocrites, within 
and without the church, shall be cast into hell. "God 
shall appoint him his portion with the hypocrites ; there 
shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth'' (Matt. 24 :51) . 

3. "Christians haye treated me wrongly." 

Ask him what fault he has to find with God's treat- 
ment of him. For this use 

Micah 6 :3 : 

|/^ O my people, what have I done unto thee? and wherein 

' have I wearied thee? testify against me. 

And Isa. 5 :3, 4, and Jer. 2 :5. 

Show him that God's dealings with him have been 
faultless; that he has received undeserved blessings 
from His hand, all of which have been designed to lead 
him to repentance. Use 

Rom. 2 :4 : 

Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and for- 
i-r^ bearance and longsuffering ; not knowing that the good- 

ness of God leadeth thee to repentance? 

Also Psa. 103:10. 



THE FAULT-FINDING 133 

Those Who Find Fault With the Christian Life. 

1. **It is too hard and exacting." 
Use Prov. 13 :15 : 

Good understanding giveth favour : but the way of 
transgressors is hard. 

This verse tells us that it is the life of the sinner 
that is a hard one, and filled with many snares and 
dangers. 

The life of the Christian is described in the following 
passages : 

Prov. 3:17: 

Her ways are ways of pleasantness, and all her paths 
are peace. 

1- John 5 :3 and Prov. 4 :18 : 

But the path of the just is as the shining light, that 
shineth more and more unto the perfect day. 

2. "It is unreasonable in its demands." 

The following passages are useful in meeting this 
objection : 

Deut. 10:12, 13: 

And now, Israel, what doth the Lord thy God require 
of thee, but to fear the Lord thy God, to walk in all 
his ways, and to love him, and to serve the Lord thy 
God with all thy heart and with all thy soul, 

To keep the commandments of the Lord, and his 
statutes, which I command thee this day for thy good? 

Also Isa. 1 :18 • Micah 6 :8. 

Those Who Find Fault With the Plan op Salva- 
tion. 

Ofttimes the person who is being dealt with finds 
fault with the means which God has ordained for the 
salvation of men. In answering this objection, the fol- 
lowing scriptures will be helpful: 



134 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 



Rom. 9 :19-21 : 

Thou wilt say then unto me, Why doth he yet find 
fault? For who hath restated his will? 

Nay but, O man, who art thou that repliest against 
God? Shall the thing formed say to him that formed 
it, Why hast thou made me thus? 

Hath not the potter power over the clay, of the same 
lump to make one vessel unto honour, and another unto 
dishonour ? 

Isa. 55 :8, 9 : 

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are 
your ways my ways, saith the Lord. 

For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are 
my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than 
your thoughts. 

Also Rom. 11:33, 34; 1 Cor. 1:26, 27. 



THOSE WHO AEE MISLED 

BY EEEONEOUS YIEWS 
OF THE TEUTH 



CHAPTER Xin. 

IX. THOSE WHO ARE MISLED BY ERRONEOUS 
VIEWS OF THE TRUTH. 

1. Tbe Boman Catholic. 

TO deal effectively with the Roman Catholic, the per- 
sonal worker must know what the Roman church 
believes and teaches, and in what respects it differs 
from Protestantism. It is well, also, to know what both 
churches believe in common. Some of the fundamental 
doctrines of the Christian faith are held in common by 
both these churches. Indeed, it is asserted by some 
that the main difference between the two denominations 
lies not so much in the matter of faith, as in the means 
by which the grace of God is to be brought to the 
hearts of men : the Romanist believing that it can come 
to the individual heart only through the agency of the 
church, while the Protestant claims that it comes from 
Christ directly through an act of faith on the part of 
the individual himself. 

The wise Christian worker will not attack the Roman 
church in his conversation and dealing with the in- 
quirer. This is likely to enrage the man, and make 
all successful dealing with him impossible. Indeed, 
it might be well to say what good you can about the 
Roman church. It is not wise under ordinary, if any, 
circumstances to arouse the antagonism of an inquirer 
unnecessarily; nothing is ever gained by it. 

If you ask the Roman Catholic whether he is a 
Christian, he will doubtless answer in the affirmative. 
He may tell you that he has been baptized, or con- 
firmed, or both, and that therefore he is a Christian. 

137 



138 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

It would be unwise for you to contradict him. Take 
it for granted, as a basis on which to begin your deal- 
ing with him, that he is a Christian, and ask him if he 
enjoys assurance of salvation. This leads to the first 
point under our dealing with the Roman Catholic. 

(a) Begin ty asking the inquirer if he enjoys the 
assurance of salvation. 

This is beginning along the lines of least resistance. 
The Roman church, as such, from the most humble 
member thereof, even up to the Pope himself, does not 
pretend to enjoy the blessing of the assurance of sal- 
vation. Indeed, the church does not believe in its pos- 
sibility ; branding all such belief as religious presump- 
tion ; claiming that no man can know he is saved until 
he gets to heaven. 

You can use such passages as 1 John 5 :13 to show 
that it is the will of God, according to the teaching 
of the Bible, that we should know that we are saved : 

These things have I written nnto you that believe on 
the name of the Son of God ; that ye may know that 
ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the 
name of the Son of God. 

Also, 1 John 1:9; Acts 10:43; Acts 13:38, 39; 
Romans 8:14, 16; John 3:36; 5:24. 

By the use of these scriptures you can show the in- 
quirer that he may know that the various phases of 
Christian experience: the assurance of sin forgiven, 
the possession of eternal life and the knowledge of 
assured security are not only possible possessions of 
the Christian, but something that is demanded by the 
Word of God. 

(h) Show the necessity of the new "birth, 
(1) Baptism and regeneration. 

Ask him if he has been ^'born again"; if he has be- 
come "a new creature" in Christ Jesus. He will doubt- 



MISLED BY ERRONEOUS VIEWS 139 

less tell you that he was born again when, as an infant, 
he was baptized (for the Roman church believes that 
regeneration takes place in baptism). 

It will be well to show him from the Scriptures that 
baptism i^ not regeneration, although it is often mis- 
taken for it. This may be done by the use of two 
passages in the First Epistle to the Corinthians. 

In 1 Cor. 4 :15, the apostle says : 

For though ye have ten thousand instructors in Christ, 
yet have ye not many fathers : for in Christ Jesus I 
have begotten you through the gospel. 

By this he means to say that they were regenerated 
through his agency ; that the Holy Spirit used him as 
the instrument through which they were led to a saving 
knowledge of Jesus Christ. This is the clear teaching 
of this passage. 

Now, in 1 Cor. 1 :14, the apostle further says : 

I thank God that I baptized none of you, but Crispus 
and Gains. 

In this passage the apostle seems to depreciate the 
rite of baptism so far as it being an agency in their 
regeneration is concerned. Could he possibly have thus 
treated baptism if it had been an essential element 
in their regeneration? 

The case of Simon Magus (Acts 8:9-24), who was 
baptized by the apostles, but who, as the context clearly 
shows, still remained unconverted and was yet "in the 
gall of bitterness, and the bond of iniquity,'^ may be 
used to show that baptism is not to be substituted for 
the new birth 

(2) Regeneration defined. 
From 2 Cor. 5 :17 : 

Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature : 
old things are passed away ; behold, all things are become 

new. 



140 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

and Gal. 6 :15, show what regeneration is : that it does 
not consist in the observance of any mere outward cere- 
monial act, such as baptism or confirmation, but that 
it is becoming ^'a new creature" (or creation) ; the 
dying to the old life of sin, and the rising to a new 
life of righteousness (1 John 5:4). 

Then show from John 1 :12, 13 ; 1 John 5 :1 ; 1 Peter 
1 :23, and Romans 10 :9, 10, how a man is born again : 
by believing what the Word of God has to say about 
Jesus Christ, receiving Him thus as one's own personal 
Saviour, and confessing Him as such a Saviour before 
the world. 

(3) Evidences of the new birth. 

Show the inquirer the marks by which he may know 
that he has been born again. This may be done by the 
use of many references in 1 John: 

5 :4 — "overcometh the world" ; 

3 :9 — victory over sin ; 

3 :14 — "love of the brethren," etc. 

In this connection it might be well to distinguish 
between confirmation and regeneration. The Romanist 
often mistakes the one for the other. Mere reforma- 
tion is not regeneration. Such scriptures as Matthew 
7:21-23; Luke 11:24-26: 

When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he 
walketh through dry places, seeking rest ; and finding 
none, he saith, I will return unto my house, whence I 
came out. 

And when he cometh, he findeth it swept and garnished. 

and 13:25, 26, show conclusively that one may reform 
in life and yet not be a true Christian, and finally fail 
of entering heaven. 

(c) True repentance necessary. 

In dealing with the Roman Catholic, emphasis needs 
to be laid upon the necessity of true repentance. Too 
often he is satisfied with the mere confession of his 
sins to the priest, forgetting that no confessed sin 



MISLED BY ERRONEOUS VIEWS 141 

is forgiven unless it is at the same time forsaken. Re- 
pentance is not only a heart broken for sin; it is also 
a heart broken from sin. Such passages as Proverbs 
28:13; Jonah 3:10; and Isaiah 55:7 clearly enforce 
this duty. 

. The sole mediatorship of Jesus Christ is a fact that 
needs to be strongly emphasized. 1 Timothy 2 :5 is a 
good passage to wse in this connection: 

For there is one God, and one mediator between God 
and men, ttie man Christ Jesus. 

Also Acts 4 :12. 

(d) Get the Roman Catholic to read the Bible, 
Finally, it is a good thing, if you can do it, to get 
the Roman Catholic to carefully read his Bible. It 
matters not very much whether it be the Catholic or 
Protestant Version. Probably more Catholics have 
been led to Christ in this way than in any other. I 
remember receiving into the membership of my church 
a young man who had been for many years a French 
Roman Catholic. I asked him how he came to re- 
nounce Roman Catholicism for Protestantism. He told 
me that one evening he wandered into a prayer meet- 
ing, and listened to the testimonies of saved men and 
women. He was deeply impressed with the joyful 
assurance that marked the testimonies, and resolved 
that he would find out the secret of it. He con- 
fessed that he himself was a stranger to such an 
experience, although a member of the church. In 
speaking with one of those who had testified, at the 
close of the meeting, his attention was directed to the 
Bible. He resolved that he would own a Protestant 
Bible for himself. He purchased one, and read it 
night after night on his return from work, hiding it 
safely afterwards so that his parents would not know 



142 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

what he was reading. After some weeks of such read- 
ing and study of the Scriptures, he came to the con- 
clusion that such an experience was for him too. So, 
in his room, he knelt and definitely surrendered his 
life to God. From that time forward he knew the joy 
of the Lord. It was the reading of the Word of God 
that did it. "The entrance of Thy Word giveth light." 

2. The Unitarian. 

Generally speaking, a Unitarian is one who denies 
the doctrine of the Trinity ; i. e., he believes in God the 
Father, but not in God the Son, or in God the Holy 
Ghost. More specifically, Unitarianism regards Christ 
as a very good and holy, indeed, the best man, but by 
no means divine and equal with the Father. The Holy 
Spirit is looked upon rather as an influence than a 
person, and, most certainly, not a divine person. The 
Bible is regarded as a work of great genius, yet not 
inspired and infallible, nor as the ultimate authority 
in matters of faith and practice. The miracles of the 
Bible are explained on a naturalistic basis, somewhat 
mythical, and of the nature of folklore. The atonement 
and regeneration are both disbelieved, the terms 
scarcely ever being used by them. Sin is more of a 
defect of human nature than a thing of guilt; some- 
thing that may be removed by culture and education. 
There are, however, here and there, especially in the 
New England states, some Unitarians who are not 
so radical as this, and whose beliefs resemble somewhat 
the orthodox faith, except, of course, in the matter of 
the doctrine of the Trinity. 

The main point at issue, however, with which the 
personal worker will have to deal, will be the relation 
of the Unitarian to the person and work of Christ. 
Other things will adjust themselves if this fundamental 
doctrine is satisfactorily dealt with. We cannot think 



MISLED BY ERRONEOUS VIEWS 143 

aright in the rest unless we think rightly of Him. 
Someone has well said> 

Names, and sects, and parties fall; 
But Thou, O Christ, art all in all. 

(a) Show him that he cannot have the Father with- 
out the Son. 

1 John 2 :22, 23 is very explicit on this matter : 

Who is a liar but he that denieth that Jesus is the 

Christ? He is antichrist, that denieth the Father and 
the Son. 

Whosoever denieth the Son, the same hath not the 

Father ; but he that acknowledgeth the Son, hath the 
Father also. 

In John 14 :6 we have a distinct and positive affirma- 
tion that access to the Father is obtainable only 
through Jesus Christ the Son. 

In Matthew 11 :27, the Lord Jesus Himself says : 

All things are delivered unto me of my Father ; and 
no man knoweth the Son, but the Father ; neither 
knoweth any man the Father, save the Son, and he 
to whomsoever the Son will reveal him. 

To disown the Son is to shut the door of knowledge 
that opens to the Father in one's own face. Any pro- 
fessed faith in the Father, and assumed knowledge or 
communion with Him to which the Unitarian may lay 
claim, is, according to these scriptures, shown to be 
false and ungrounded. These are startling assertions. 

(h) Show that salvation comes in no other way, save 
through the person and work of Jesus Christ. 

Acts 4 :12 is uncompromising in its assertion of this 
tremendous fact: 

Neither is there salvation in any other : for there is 
none other name under heaven given among men, whereby 
we must be saved. 

Can words be clearer in their meaning than these? 
Does not the refusal to believe in Christ mean the 
virtual rejection of a proffered salvation? Are any 



144 PEESOXAL SOUL-WIXXIXG 

words of Christ Himself more final and decisive than 
those found in John 8:21, 24? 

Then said Jesns again nnto them, I go my way, and ye 
shall seek me, and shall die in yonr sins : whither I go, 
ye cannot come. 

I said therefore nnto yon, that ye shall die in yonr 
sins : for if ye believe not tiiat I am he, ye shall die in 
your sins. 

The attitude of the Unitarian of today is practically 
that of the Jews of our Lord's day to whom these 
words were spoken. 

(c) SJiov: that it most certainly is the icin of God 
the Father that men should 'believe on the name of 
His San, Jesus Christ. 

This is clear from such passages as John 5 :22, 23 : 

For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed all 
judgment unto the Son ; 

That all men should honor the Son. even as they honor 
the Father. He that honoreth not the Son honoreth 
not the Father which hath sent him. 

Also Phil. 2 :9. 

(d) Show the awful guilt resting upon the rnan who 
rejects Jesus Christ as his Saviour. 

You may emphasize the fact that unbelief in Christ 
is the greatest sin in the world, as taught in John 
16 :8-10 : 

And when he is come, he will reprove the world of 

sin. and of righteousness, and of judgment : 
Of sin. because they believe not on me : 
Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye 

see me no more. 

This is the one sin above all others of which the Holy 
Spirit has come into the world to convict men. 

1 John 2 :22, 23 may be used to show that the sin 
of refusal to accept Jesus Christ is nothing more or 
less than the possession of the spirit of Antichrist. 

1 John 5 :10-12 shows that to thus reject Jesus Christ 
as the One through whom the Father bestows eternal 
life is to charge God with being a liar : 



MISLED BY ERRONEOUS VIEWS 145 

He that believeth on the Son of God hath the wit- 
ness in himself : he that believeth not God hath made 
him a liar ; because he believeth not the record that 
God gave of his Son. 

And this is the record, that God hath given to us 
eternal life, and this life is in his Son. 

He that hath the Son hath life ; and he that hath 
not the Son of God hath not life. 

Another good passage is Heb. 10 :28, 29. Than these, 
there are no more solemn words in the Bible. The sin 
in these verses which brings down upon the head of the 
one committing it such dreadful consequences, is the 
denial of the claim of Jesus Christ, and the accounting 
of the blood of the atonement simply of the nature of 
the death of any martyr. Is not this the sin which 
Unitarianism is committing? 

(e) If the inquirer seelcs to have you prove to him 
from the Scriptures that Jesus Christ is Deity, the Son 
of God, the Saviour of the world, show him: 

(1) That divine names are given to Jesus Christ. 
Acts 3 :14 : 

But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired 
a murderer to be granted unto you. 

Also John 20:28; Heb. 1:8, and Titus 2:13. 

(2) Divine attributes ascribed to Him. 
Omnipotence. He can do all things : 

Matt. 28 :18 : 

And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All 
power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. 

Also Eph. 1 :22, 23. 

Omniscience. He knows all things: 

Mark 2:8: 

And immediately when Jesus perceived in his spirit 
that they so reasoned within themselves, he said unto 
them, Why reason ye these things in your hearts? 

Also Col. 2 :3 ; John 2 :24-25 ; 4 :16-19 ; 6 :64 ; 16 :30. 



146 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

OmnipreseDce. He is everywhere. 
Matt. 18:20: 

For where two or three are gathered together in my 
name, there am I in the midst of them. 

Also John 14 :20 ; 3 :13 ; Eph. 1 :23. 
Eternity. He always existed. 
John 1 :1 : 

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was 
with God, and the Word was God. 

Also John 8:58; Micah 5:2; Heb. 13:8; John 1:2. 
(3) Divine works ascribed to Him. 
Creation. 
John 1 :l-3 : 

The beginning was the Word, and the Word was with 
God, and the Word was God. 

The same was in the beginning with God. 

All things were made by him ; and without him was 
not any thing made that was made. 

Also Col. 1 :16 : 

For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, 
and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether 
they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or 
powers ; all things were created by him, and for him. 

Also Heb. 1:10; John 1:1-3. 

Judgment. 
John 5 :22, 23 : 

For the Father judgeth no man, but hath committed 
all judgment unto the Son : 

That all men should honor the Son, even as they honor 
the Father. He that honoreth not the Son honoreth not 
the Father which hath sent him. 

John 6:39: 

And this is the Father's will which hath sent me, that 
of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, 
but should raise it up again at the last day. 



MISLED BY ERRONEOUS VIEWS 147 

Also John 5 :28, 29. 
Gives eternal life. 
John 5 :21 : . 

For as the Father raiseth up the dead, and quickeneth 
them ; even so the Son quickeneth whom he will. 

Also John 10 :27, 29. 

(4) Divine worship is accorded to Him. 

Matt. 28 :9 : 

And as they went to tell his disciples, behold, Jesus 
met them, saying. All hail. And they came and held him 
by the feet, and worshipped him. 

Matt. 14 :33 : 

Then they that were in the ship came and worship- 
ped him, saying. Of a truth thou art the Son of God. 

Also Luke 24:52; Kev. 22:8, 9; Psa. 45:11; John 
5:23, with Rev. 5:8, 9, 12, 13; Heb. 1:6; Phil. 2:10, 11. 

3. The Universalist. 

By the Universalist is meant one who claims that 
every one is going to be finally saved; that no created 
being will be forever lost. 

How TO Deal With Them. 

(a) Know and understand the scriptures on which 
they hase their argument. 
They are as follows: 

1 Tim. 2 :3, 4 : 

For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God 
our Saviour ; 

Who will have all men to be saved, and to come unto 
the knowledge of the truth. 

You may show them that this passage teaches not 
the determined purpose and decree of God, but the 



148 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

desire and wish on the part of God that all men should 
be saved. To desire and wish the salvation of a person 
is not the same as determining that that thing shall 
take place. God does not determine that all men shall 
be saved, but desires that all men should be saved. 
Matthew 1 :19 illustrates both uses of the word loill : 

1 Cor. 15 :22 : 

For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be 
made alive. 

This verse deals not with the question of all men 
receiving eternal life in Christ, but with the physical 
resurrection of all men because of Christ's resurrection. 
The whole race died physically in Adam; the whole 
race rises physically in Christ. This is the clear inter- 
pretation according to the context. 

(h) Show that the will of man has some part to play 
in his salvation. 

For example, he must repent (Luke 13:3) ; he must 
'believe (John 3:36); he must forsake his sins (Prov. 
28:13) ; he must come to Christ (John 5:40). 

(c) Use such passages as show that all men are not 
saved. 

Matt. 25:41-46: 

Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, 
Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, pre- 
pared for the devil and his angels : 

For I was an hungred, and ye gave me no meat ; I was 
thirsty, and ye gave me no drink : 

I was a stranger, and ye took me not in : naked, and 
ye clothed me not : sick, and in prison, and ye visited 
me not. 

Then shall they also answer him, saying, Lord, when 
saw we thee an nungred, or athirst, or a stranger, or 
naked, or sick, or in prison, and did not minister unto 
thee? 

Then shall he answer them, saying, Verily I say unto 
you, Inasmuch as ye did it not to one of the least of 
these, ye did it not to me. 

And these shall go away into everlasting punishment : 
but the righteous into life eternal. 

Compare also Rev. 20 :15 ; 21 :8 ; 2 Thess. 1 :7-9. 



MISLED BY ERRONEOUS VIEWS 149 

4. The Seventh-Day AdTentist. 

In dealing with, this class, the Christian worker 
should seek to acquaint himself quite fully with what 
Seventh-Day Adventists believe. The following booklets 
will give much of the desired information : Ought Chris- 
tians to Keep the Sabljath? by R. A. Torrey ; Ad/ventism 
Refuted, by D. M. Canright; Seventh-Dap Adnentism, 
by David Anderson Berry. 

The fundamental doctrine of Seventh-Day Adventism 
is the absolute necessity of keeping the seventh day of 
the week (Saturday) as the Sabbath. Those who do 
not keep Saturday as the Sabbath, but, instead, keep 
Sunday (the first day of the week) have upon them 
the mark of the beast, and, therefore, cannot be saved. 

How TO Deal With Them. 

(a) Know their favorite passages, and show how 
they wrongly interpret them. 

1 John 2 :4 : ' 

I 

He that saith, I know him, and keepeth not his com- 
mandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 

The commandment in this verse is made to mean 
the Sabbath. They make an almost constant practice 
of reading the word "Sabbath'' in place of the word 
"commandment" wherever such word occurs in the 
New Testament. By the use of 1 John 3 :23 : 

And this is his commandment, That we should believe 
on the name of his Son Jesus Christ, and love one an- 
other, as he gave us commandment. 

you can show what God means by the commandments 
of Christ: love and faith, not Sabbath-keeping. 

Another favorite passage with the Adventist is Rev. 
22 :14 : 



150 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they 
may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in 
through the gates into the city. 

The "commandments" here, of course, are made to 
mean the Ten Commandments, which naturally in- 
cludes the fourth, or the Sabbath-keeping command- 
ment. Participation in eternal life is, therefore, said 
to be dependent upon keeping this commandment. A 
careful reading of this verse in the Revised Version 
will show that the words "that keep his command- 
ments" are omitted entirely from the text. So there 
is nothing left for the Adventist to build his doctrine 
on in this verse. 

(h) Show them that the Law {on ta'bles of stone ^ 
clearly the so-called moral law) is done away. 

2 Cor. 3 :7-ll : 

But if the ministration of death, written and engraven 
in stones, was glorious, so that the children of Israel 
could not steadfastly behold the face of Moses for the 
glory of his countenance ; which glory was to be done 
away ; 

How shall not the ministration of the spirit be rather 
glorious ? 

For if the ministration of condemnation be glory, much 
more doth the ministration of righteousness exceed in 
glory. 

For even that which was made glorious had no glory 
in this respect, by reason of the glory that excelleth. 

For if that which is done away was glorious, much 
more that which remaineth is glorious. 

The Sabbath was one of the laws written on the 
tables of stone. These, Scripture says, were "done 
away." In these verses we have a distinct statement 
that the covenant that was represented by the two 
tables of stone upon which was written the Sabbath 
law is abolished. You are therefore placed on the 
horns of a dilemma, either you are under the Old Cove- 
nant with its ministration of death, or you are under 
the New Covenant with its ministration of the Spirit 
who giveth life. If you keep the seventh-day Sabbath, 
jou are acknowledging that you are under the former, 



MISLED BY ERRONEOUS VIEWS 151 

and therefore have no claim to the benefits of the lat- 
ter. Not only so, but as to be under the former 
necessitates your becoming a Jew ; so the Seventh-Day 
Adventist dictum is : "Gentile Christians must become 
Israelites, and so come under the obligation to keep 
the Sabbath, for the Sabbath was given forever through- 
out their generations.'' 

(c) Show them that hy the death of Christ Chris- 
tians have hecome dead to the Law. 

Kom. 7 :l-4 : 

Know ye not, brethren, (for I speak to them that 
know the law,) how that the law hath dominion over 
a man as long as he liveth? 

For the woman which hath a husband is bound by the 
law to her husband so long as he liveth ; but if the 
husband be dead, she is loosed from the law of her 
husband. 

So then if, while her husband liveth, she be married 
to another man, she shall be called an adulteress : but if 
her husband be dead, she is free from that law ; so 
that she is no adulteress, though she be married to 
another man. 

Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to 
the law by the body of Christ ; that ye should be married 
to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, 
that we should bring forth fruit unto God. 

Compare with this Rom. 10 :3-9. 

(d) Show them that every one of the Ten Command- 
ments, except the fourth, referring to SaJjdath obser- 
vance, is reaffirmed in the New Testament. 

There is no hint anywhere that the Sabbath law is 
binding on the Christian. By the example of Christ, 
the contrary seems to be the case. (Compare the dis- 
cussion regarding the disciples plucking corn on the 
Sabbath day. Matt. 12:1-8.) Indeed, Christ seems to 
consider the Sabbath law less binding than any other 
one of the ten, for He says it may be broken under 
certain circumstances and the breaker yet be guiltless. 
This could not be true of covetousness, or adultery, 
even though such a sin were committed within the 



152 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

sacred precincts of the temple. Indeed, it would be 
all the more grievous because committed therein. 

(e) Show them that the Sabhath ohligation is ex- 
pressly and plainly declared not to he binding upon 
the Christian. 

Col. 2:16, 17: 

Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, 
or in respect of a liolyday, or of tlie new moon, or of 
the sabbath days : 

Which are a shadow of things to come : but the body 
is of Christ. 

Seventh-Day Adventists may here contend that Paul 
did not refer to the regular weekly Sabbath, but to 
some one of the special Sabbaths. Why did he not say 
so then? 

Indeed, does he not refer to such special Sabbaths 
by calling them feasts, new-moons, etc.? (Compare 2 
Chron. 2:4; 8:13.) Paul includes in his category all 
these shadowy Sabbaths, as they are called, as well as 
the weekly Sabbath. This has been illustrated as fol- 
lows: You are standing in the road with your back 
to the rising sun; suddenly the shadow of a hat ap- 
pears, and as it passes you the head next appears, and 
so on. By this you know someone is overtaking you; 
but owing to the position of the sun the shadow is long 
drawn out, and some moments may elapse ere your 
friend in the body overtakes you. So Christ was com- 
ing, and, unseen, cast His shadow before in the form 
of Old Testament rites and ceremonies, holy days, new- 
moons, and Sabbaths. But when He who cast the 
shadow came, it would surely be foolish to be occupied 
with the shadow and not with Himself. And now He 
is gone awhile, we need no shadow, for we have the 
substance in the third person in the Holy Trinity, who 
dwells with us and in us as the representative of our 
absent Lord Jesus. This, those who lived under the 



MISLED BY ERRONEOUS VIEWS 153 

old dispensation, the economy of shadows, had not. 

(f) Show that the Sahhath is a purely Jewish insti- 
tution and was never meant to he 'binding on the Chris- 
tian. 

This is clearly stated in the following passages; note 
the context of each. 

Deut. 5 :12-15 : 

Here the Sabbath is used in connection with the de- 
liverance from Egypt — "Therefore the Lord thy God 
commanded thee to keep the Sabbath day." 

See also Ex. 20 JL, 2, and note context. 

The Sabbath was a sign between Israel and God (Ex. 
31.13-17; Ezek. 20:12, 13). It is true the Sabbath is 
mentioned in Gen, 2 :3, but it is not mentioned there as 
a command or a law, but wherever it is given as a law 
it is in connection with Israel. When Israel as a 
nation passed away, that Sabbath passed away; when 
Israel shall again be restored, then the Sabbath and its 
obligations shall again be binding. This is just what 
we find in Isa. 52:2-7. We must distinguish between 
the Jew, the Gentile, and the Church of God (1 Cor. 
10:32). The Christian is not a child of Israel, he is a 
child of God, with a place in the Body of Christ, where 
no national distinctions are known — "neither Jew nor 
Gentile." 

{g) Show them that it is impossible for even an 
Adventist to keep the Jewish Sabbath; so that, if this 
were required, a Seventh-Day Adventist could not be 
saved. 

According to their teaching, a believer who fails to 
keep the Sabbath is lost. 

Here is the Adventist's position on the Sabbath-keep- 
ing question : 

(1) The observance of the Sabbath from sunset on 
Friday to sunset on Saturday. 



154 PERSOXAL SOUL-WINNING 

(2) The non-observance of this is ^^the mark of the 

beast.'' 

(3) There is no hope of salvation for those who will 

not keep the Sabbath. 

(4) Through the two great errors, the immortality 

of the soul and Sunday sacredness, Satan will 
bring the people under his deceptions. 

(5) Sabbath-keeping is the great sign of loyalty to 

God, for it is written : "It is a sign between 
me and the children of Israel forever." 

(6) Believers who fail to keep the Sabbath are lost; 

for Mrs. White, a noted Seventh-Day Adventist 
author, says : "If it is seen that, though run- 
ning well for a time, they did not overcome 
(i. €., kept not the Sabbath), then instead of 
confessing their names before the Father and 
His angels, and blotting out their sins. Christ 
will blot out their names from the book of 
life . . . after which Christ will come to 
take to Himself those who are found to be 
loyal to Him." 
But can and do the Seventh-Day Adventists keep the 

Sabbath according to Jewish law? Let us see. Take 

this quotation from their catechism: 

^^Q. In Ex. 35:3 we read: Ye shall kindle no fire 
throughout your habitation upon the Sabbath 
day." 

Do they obey this? If not, how do they get around, 
it ? In this way : 

^^A. In that climate fire was not needed for warmth, 
and the very fact that one was kindled in- 
dicated that unnecessary lahor was to &e per- 
formed/^ 

Here is extreme and inexcusable ignorance. What 
does the very Book they profess to study say? John 



% 



MISLED BY ERRONEOUS VIEWS 155 

18:18: "And the servants and officers stood there who 
had made a fire of coals, for it was cold; and they 
warmed themselves; and Peter stood with them and 
warmed himself." If Christians are thus required to 
keep the Sabbath, how then can they live in cold 
climates? 

Again, Israel kept their Sabbath from sunset, Fri- 
day, to sunset, Saturday. The law is clear upon the 
point: "From even unto even shall ye celebrate your 
Sabbath." They could do this with the utmost regu- 
larity in their own land. But what happens in those 
lands where there are no sunsets at certain seasons of 
the year. How about such countries as Norway and 
Sweden? Further, how do you explain the fact that 
far away towards the extremes of the earth, traveling 
from the equator, there are periods of six months day 
and six months night from age to age? Do you not 
see that it is a geographical impossibility for all men to 
keep the same day, and that the Sabbath law, so far 
as its obedience to the letter is concerned, was only 
intended for one people, one country, and one age? 

(h) Shotv that the commandment in the Decalogue 
is to keep the Sa2)l)ath — the seventh day. 

But there is no established starting point from which 
to count. Again, it would be impossible for all the 
world to have the same starting point. 

A Seventh-Day Adventist thought to confuse Dr. 
Torrey by asking: "One of the commandments says, 
^The seventh day is the Sabbath day of the Lord,' and 
yet Sunday is observed instead. Has God changed?" 

Dr. Torrey's reply must have confused the questioner, 
for he said : 

"The Bible doesn't say the seventh day of the week 
is the Sabbath of the Lord; the Sabbath was the sev- 
enth day — after they had labored six days. God was 
not guilty of any such folly as giving a law that it 



y 



156 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

would be impossible to keep. If our being saved de- 
pended upon a certain section of the week, I should 
estimate that at least half the Seventh-Day Ad- 
ventists would be lost; for, while Seventh-Day Advent- 
ists in Australia are observing Sabbath, the great 
body of their fellow-believers are working just as 
hard as they know how, for the seventh day doesn't 
come in Chicago, where I live, until sixteen hours after 
it comes here. Now, which section is saved, and which 
is lost ? Again, I started from America last December, 
and on my way here I crossed the 180th meridian, in 
doing which I lost my Thursday, and ever since I have 
been keeping Saturday. Even then I don't keep it as 
the seventh day — I do it as the first day. Suppose two 
Seventh-Day Adventists started to go round the 
world — one east, the other west, each keeping Saturday. 
By the time they met, there would be two days' differ- 
ence between them. Can you tell me which of them 
would be saved?" 

(i) Seventh-Day Adventists dewy the conscious ex- 
istence of the soul after death; they Relieve that the 
soul sleeps hetween death and the resurrection. 

According to this teaching, there is no comforting 
outlook for the believer. As it happeneth to the beast, 
so it happeneth to the man — they both go to the one 
place. How contrary this is to the teaching of the 
Bible ! Compare 2 Cor. 5 :l-8 ; Phil. 1 :20-23. 

It is of importance in dealing with this class to 
know on what Scriptural basis they found their be- 
lief in the sleep of the soul. We must be able to give 
the proper interpretation of these Scripture references. 
They are as follows: 

Acts 2 :34 : ^^For David is not ascended into the 
heavens." This is their favorite text, or one of them. 
But the context shows clearly that it is the body and 
not the soul or spirit of David that is here spoken of; 



MISLED BY ERRONEOUS VIEWS 157 

compare ^'His sepulchre is with us/' ^'He is both dead 
and buried," "He spake of the resurrection of Christ 
. . . that his body did not see corruption." (vv. 29, 
31.) 

Eccl. 9:5-10. "The dead know nothing," etc. This 
passage is limited by the context — "under the sun." 
Yet what does 2 Sam. 15:11 mean? "With Absalom 
went 200 men . . . they went in their simplicity, 
and they knew not anything/^ The context explains 
it — they knew nothing of Absalom's plot. Again 1 
Sam. 20:39, as concerning the lad who ran after 
Jonathan's arrows: "But the lad knew not anything; 
only David and Jonathan knew the matter." So 1 
Tim. 6 :4, referring to a proud, self-conceited teacher, 
"He is proud, knowing nothing.'^ Were all these with- 
out consciousness or without thought? No; but they 
knew nothing about the things in particular mentioned. 
So with Eccl. 9:6: "Neither have they a portion for 
ever in anything that is done under the sun.'' 

Dan. 12 :2 with John 11 :11, 14, 39 : "Those that sleep 
m the dust" ; "Lazarus sleepeth." 

Why not observe the words : "Lazarus is dead . . . 
he now stinketh"? Can these words be used of the 
spirit or soul of Lazarus? Certainly not. 

So with 1 Thess. 4 :16, 17. 

This refers to the resurrection of the body, and not to 
the spirit. As the spirit does not go down into the 
grave at death (2 Cor. 5; Phil. 1:21-23), these verses 
can have no reference to it. 

Matt. 27:52 explains the whole teaching of these 
passages, — that the reference is to the resurrection of 
the bodies and not to the sleep of the soul. "The graves 
were opened, and many hodies of the saints which slept 
arose. That is the sum and substance of it all — graves^ 
J: dies, slept. 



158 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

(j) Show that the Scriptures teach that the spirit or 
soul does not die with the 'body. 

Eccl. 12 :7 ; 3 :21 ; 1 Cor. 5 :5 ; Luke 23 :43, 46. 

When Stephen died (and Jesus too) his body went 
down to the grave, but his spirit he committed into the 
hands of God (Acts 7:59). 

According to 2 Cor. 12 :2, — 

I knew a man in Christ above fourteen years ago, 
(whether in the body, I cannot tell ; or whether out of 
the body, I cannot tell : God knoweth ;) such a one caught 
up to the third heaven— 

a man can live outside of his body and go to heaven. 
Refer to the story of the Rich Man and Lazarus, the 
burial of the body in the grave, and the conscious exist- 
ence of the soul in another world (Luke 16:19-31). 
Here an intelligent conversation is carried on between 
the spirits of the departed. In the clearest possible 
way these passages teach the conscious state of the 
dead. 

Matt. 10 :28 : 

And fear not them which kill the body, but are not 
able to kill the soul : but rather fear him which is able 
to destroy both soul and body in hell. 

Then the soul does not die with the body, as is wit- 
nessed to by the appearance of Moses and Elijah on the 
transfiguration mount. 

A fuller treatment of this subject will be found in Ought Christians 
to Keep the Sabbath f by Dr. R. A. Torrey. 

5. The Spiritualist. 

Spiritualism is the belief that disembodied spirits 
can and do communicate with the living, especially 
through the agency of a person particularly susceptible 
to spiritualistic influence called a "medium." Under 
the term "Spiritualism" are to be classed all the various 



MISLED BY ERRONEOUS VIEWS 159 

doctrines and theories collectively founded upon this 
belief. 

It professes to give advice spiritual, professional, and 
domestic. It boasts of being able to give tangible evi- 
dence of immortality so that we need not accept this 
great doctrine by faith alone. 

Some have sought to explain the phenomena of Spirit- 
ualism on the basis of trickery, ventriloquism, or per- 
sonal magnetism. Others claim that the whole thing 
is a huge fraud. A noted Spiritualist said: "Admit, 
if you will, that 99 per cent of Spiritualism is fraud, 
you must explain the hundredth part that is genuine 
and true." 

A Christian worker should know how Spiritualism 
explains itself, and then how to meet it from the Bible. 

(a) Show that Spiritualism denies the existence of 
Satan and angels. 

Hence any communication between this and the in- 
visible world must come from the spirits of departed 
human beings who move in circles around this earth, 
and are graded according to their moral qualities, the 
worst being nearest to us, and the best farthest from us. 

(h) To expose the error of this doctrine, show that 
the BiMe teaches that there is a class of heings in the 
invisible world distinct from the spirits of departed 
human heings. 

Jude 6 : 

And the angels which kept not their first estate, but 
left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting 
chains, under darkness unto the judgment of the great 
day. 

Also Heb. 12 :22, 23. 

From these scriptures we infer that there is an order 
of beings called angels, both good and bad. These 
verses cannot refer to men, for all men have sinned, 
whereas some of the angels did not sin ; they do not re- 



160 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

fer to men, because these beings who sinned were cast 
down from heaven and out into darkness, and that is 
not true of man, for he has always been on the earth. 
Further, we are also told that the angels sang when the 
foundations of the world were laid, whereas man was 
not made until the sixth creative day. The passage 
in Hebrews clearly distinguishes between angels and 
the spirits of just men. It is clear from these passages 
that there is an order of beings wholly distinct from 
man, who are intelligent and have power to communi- 
cate with each other and with other intelligent beings, 
like man, if permitted to do so. 

(c) Show that the work of their spirits is not the 
work of good angels. 

The work of good angels is set forth in Hebrews 1 :14. 
Such a helpful ministry as this is not the work of 
Spiritualism, for Spiritualism afiflcts good people : it is 
skeptical, anti-Christian; it repudiates the Bible; it 
denies God. 

(d) Show that Spiritualism is not the work of the 
spirits of the dead. 

According to the Scriptures these are in heaven with 
Christ, and not roaming around the earth subject to the 
beck and call of any spiritualistic medium. We have 
no indications anywhere in the Bible that the spirits of 
departed ones communicate with the living on earth. 
Indeed, the parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus 
(Luke 16) shows the impossibility of such a revelation. 

If, therefore. Spiritualism is not the work of good 
angels or of departed spirits, it must be the work of 
Satan and demons, and that is just what the Bible 
claims it to be. 

1 Tim. 4 :1 : 

Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter 
times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to 
seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils. 



MISLED BY ERRONEOUS VIEWS 161 

Compare also 2 Thess. 2 :9-12, and 2 Tim. 3 :13. 
Dealing more specifically with Spiritualism, 

(e) Endeavor to show the attitude of the Bible 
toward it. It is ahsolutely forbidden in the Scriptures, 

Dent. 18 :9-12 : 

When thou art come into the land which the Lord thy 
God giveth thee, thou shalt not learn to do after the 
abominations of those nations. 

There shall not be found among you any one that 
maketh his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, 
or that useth divination, or an observer of times, or an 
enchanter, or a- witch. 

Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or 
a wizard, or a necromancer. 

For all that do these things are an abomination unto 
the Lord : and because of these abominations the Lord 
thy God doth drive them out from before thee. 

Compare also Lev. 19 :31 ; Acts 16 :16-18 ; Isa. 8 :19-22. 

(f) Show that God's curse rests upon it. 
1 Chron. 10 :13, 14 : 

So Saul died for his transgression which he committed 
against the Lord, even against the word of the Lord, 
which he kept not, and also for asking counsel of one 
that had a familiar spirit, to inquire of it ; 

And inquired not of the Lord : therefore he slew him, 
and turned the kingdom unto David the son of Jesse. 

Compare also 2 Kings 21 :l-6 ; Lev. 20 :6 ; Deut. 18 :10, 
12; Rev. 21:8. 

(g) Show that it is a repudiation of God's revelation 
in His Word. 

Isa. 8 :19, 20 : 

And when they shall say unto you, Seek unto them that 
have familiar spirits, and unto wizards that peep and 
that mutter: should not a people seek unto their God? 
for the living to the dead? 

To the law and to the testimony : if they speak not 
according to this word, it is because there is no light 
in them. 

Compare also Luke 16 :27-31. 



162 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

If in this connection the Spiritualist should refer you 
to the Bible story of the appearance of Samuel at Endor 
(1 Sam. 28 :ll-20), you may show him that in this story 
Satan impersonates Samuel, for it cannot be that God, 
who had denied information to Saul in legitimate ways, 
w^ould now grant that information in ways which met 
with His disapproval and upon which His curse rests. 

(h) Finally^ cipply the Scriptural test hy whicH we 
may knoio whether a doctrine is of God or not. 

This test is found in 1 John 4 :l-3 : 

Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits 
whether they are of God : because many false prophets 
are gone out into the world. 

Hereby know ye the Spirit of God : Every spirit that 
confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of 
God: 

And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ 
is come in the flesh is not of God : and this is that spirit 
of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come ; 
and even now alreadv is it in the world. 

The Scriptural test is the attitude towards Jesus 
Christ. Spiritualism denies the doctrines of Christ set 
forth in these verses, therefore Spiritualism is not of 
God : it is anti-Christian. 

6. The Jew. 

It is undoubtedly harder to lead a Jew than one of 
any other nationality to become a Christian. Work 
among the Jews has met with less numerical success 
than work among any other people. The principal ob- 
jection of the Jew to the Christian religion is the 
acceptance of Jesus Christ as the Messiah and the Son 
of God. It is doubtless true that the fear of persecu- 
tion also keeps many Jews from becoming Christians. 
These two thoughts must be kept prominent in the mind 
in dealing with these people. In dealing with the 
Jews, use the following method : 

(a) Show from the Old Testament Scriptures that 
Jesus is the Christ. 



MISLED BY ERRONEOUS VIEWS 163 

This may be done by taking the words: "This was 
written that it might be fulfilled/' as found in the 
Scriptures (in Matthew, for 'example), and refer- 
ring to the events in the Old Testament which in this 
passage claim to have been fulfilled. Endeavor to show 
that the Christ of the New Testament, in whom all 
these things were fulfilled, was the promised Messiah 
of the Old Testament. One reason why Jews reject 
Jesus Christ as the Messiah is because of His humilia- 
tion and suffering, the which were considered by the 
Jews of our Lord's day, as they are considered by the 
Jews of our day, as being incompatible with the Mes- 
siahship. To show the falsity of this position you may 
refer to the 53rd chapter of Isaiah, the 22nd and 69th 
Psalms, and Zechariah 12 :10 — all of which are recog- 
nized as Messianic. From these you may show that the 
picture of Christ in the Old Testament was that of a 
sufi'ering as well as a reigning Messiah. 

fb) It will Z>6 well to show from the hook of He'hrews 
how that the Old Testament sacrificial economy has 
teen done away in Christ, and that salvation is now to 
te found only in the shed hlood of Christ, 

The 8th and 10th chapters of Hebrews in particular 
emphasize this truth. 

(c) Show the nature of the punishment that comes 
'because of the rejection of Jesus Christ as Saviour. 

Some of the most solemn passages in the Bible deal 
with this phase of the question. 

Heb. 10:26-29: 

For if we sin willfully after that we have received 
the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more 
sacrifice for sins, 

But a certain fearful looking for of judgment and 
fiery indignation, which shall devour the adversaries. 

He that despised Moses' law died without mercy under 
two or three witnesses : 

Of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he 
be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the 
Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant, 
wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath 
done despite unto the Spirit of grace? 



164 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

Compare also Heb. 6:4-6. Study these passages in 
the Revised Version 

(d) If the fear of persecution is keeping the Jew from 
becoming a Christian^ use the following scriptures: 

2 Tim. 2 :12 : 

If we suffer, we shall also reign with him : if we deny 
him, ne also will deny us : 

Acts 5 :40, 41 : 

And to him they agreed : and when they had called 
the apostles, and beaten them, they commanded that they 
should not speak in the name of Jesus, and let them go. 

And they departed from the presence of the council, 
rejoicing that they were counted worthy to suffer shame 
for his name. 

Compare also 2 Cor. 4 :17; 1 Peter 2 :20, 21. 



8. The Christian Scientist. 

In dealing with the Christian Science delusion, the 
Christian worker needs to guard against two things: 
underestimating it, or overestimating it. Its influence 
is subtle and far-reaching, but it is not so tremendously 
extensive and influential as many adherents of the sect 
would have us believe. The Christian need not be 
thrown into despair by any swelling reports of its 
teachings covering the whole world. ^'Christian 
Science is neither to be ridiculed nor feared; to be 
marvelled at nor tampered with, but examined and 
classified in the light of the only divine Revelation'' — 
James M. Gray. 

Neither should we be misled by the signs and won- 
ders it professes to be able to perform. That these are 
not in themselves signs of their religion being from 
God is evident from the fact that such signs accom- 
pany the great apostasy of the latter days at whose 
head is Satan. Read Matt. 7:22, 23; 2 Thess. 2:8, 9; 
2 Cor. 11 :14, 15 ; Mark 13 :22, 23. Pharoah's wise men 



MISLED BY ERRONEOUS VIEWS 



165 



and astrologers were able to imitate God's servants, 
Moses and Aaron, by producing similar wonders. 

The Christian worker should know in what respects 
Christian Science contradicts the Bible. ''To the law 
and to the testimony : if they speak not acccording 
to this Word, it is because there is no light in them" 
(Isa. 8:20). The following arrangement, taken from 
The Christian Science Delusion^ by Dr. A. C. Dixon, 
with his kind permission, sets before us in a concise 
way the teachings of Christian Science and the Bible 
contrasted (the quotations from Science and Health 
being of the edition of 1909) : 

^'Christian Science is a. turning from the truth of 
revelation to the myths of imagination, as will appear 
by the following comparisons: 



The Christian 
myth says : 



Science 



The mere habit of pleading with 
the divine mind, as one pleads 
with a human being, perpetuates 
the belief in God as humanly cir- 
cumscribed — an error which im- 
pedes spiritual growth, (p. 2.) 

God is not influenced by man. 
(p. 7.) 



One sacrifice, however great, is 
insufficient to pay the debt of sin. 
(p. 23.) 

The atonement requires constant 
self-immolation on the sinner's 
part. (p. 23.) 

Jesus' students, not sufficiently 
advanced fully to understand their 
Master's triumph, did not perform 
many wonderful works until they 
saw him after his crucifixion, and 
learned that he had not died. (pp. 
45, 46.) 

This Comforter I understand to 
be Divine Science, (p. 55.) 



The Truth of R/evelation 
says: 

If ye then, being evil, know how 
to give good gifts unto your chil- 
dren, how much more shall your 
Father in heaven give good things 
to them that ask him? (Matt. 
7:11.) 

Whatsoever ye shall ask in my 
name, that will I do, that the 
Father may be glorified in the 
Son. (John 14:13.) 

Now once in the end of the 
world hath he appeared to put 
away sin by the sacrifice of him- 
self. (Heb. 9:26.) 

Being justified by faith, we have 
peace with God through our Lord 
Jesus Christ. (Rom. 5:1.) 

Christ both died and rose. 
(Rom. 14:9.) 



I will pray the Father, and he 
shall give you another Comforter, 
that he may abide with you for- 
ever He shall teach you all 

things, and bring all things to 
your remembrance. (John 14 :16, 
26.) 



166 



PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 



The Christian Science 
myth : 



The Truth of Kevelation: 



The supposition that there 

are good and evil spirits is a mis- 
take Evil has no reality, (pp. 

70, 71.) 

He restored Lazarus by the un- 
derstanding that he never died, 
(p. 75.) 

He never described disease, (p. 
79.) 

Miracles are impossible in 
science, (p. 83.) 

Death is not a stepping-stone to 
life, immortality and bliss. (p. 
203.) 

Decrepitude is not according to 
law, nor is it a necessity of na- 
ture, but an illusion, that may be 
avoided. (1902 Edition, p. 245.) 



God ... 
(p. 335.) 



never created matter. 



The theory of three persons in 
one God— that is, a personal 
trinity — suggests polytheism 
(heatken gods, 1902 edition) 
rather than the ever-present I' 
am. (p. 256.) 

Man co-exists with God and the 
universe, (p. 266.) 

In the infinitude of mind mat- 
ter must be unknown (1902 Edi- 
tion reads — Matter is unknown in 
the infinitude of mind- p. 280.) 

Man has a sensationless body, 
(p. 280.) 



In that same hour he (Jesus) 
cured many .... of evil spirits. 
(Luke 7:21.) 

Then said Jesus unto them 
plainly, Lazarus is dead. (John 
11 :14.) 

Jesus — rebuked the foul spirit, 
saying unto him. Thou dumb and 
deaf spirit. (Mark 9:25.) 

Many believed in his name when 
they saw the miracles which he 
did. (John 2:23.) 

To depart and be with Christ, 
which is far better. (Phil. 1 :23.) 
Absent from the bodv. present 
with the Lord. (2 Cor. 5:8.) 

The hoary head is a crown of 
glory, if it be found in the way 
of righteousness. (Prov. 16:31.) 



In the beginning God created 
the heaven and the earth. (Gen. 
1:L) 

Baptizing them in the name of 
the Father, and of the Son, and 
of the Holy Ghost. ^Matt. 28: 
19.) 



God created man. (Gen. 1:27.) 

He is the saviour of the body. 
(Eph. 5 :23.) 



She felt in her body that she 
was healed. (Mark 5:29.) 



Spirit and matter no more com- 
mingle than light and darkness ; 
when one appears the other dis- 
appears, (p. 281.) 

^ruth demonstrated is eternal 
life. (p. 289.) 



Heaven is not a locality. (p. 
291.) 

No final judgment awaits mor- 
tals, (p. 291.) 

Evil is not made and is not real, 
(p. 311.) 



Your bodv is the temple of the 
Holy Ghost. (1 Cor. 6:19.) 



This is life eternal, that they 
might know thee the only true 
God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou 
hast sent. (John 17:3.) 

I so to prepare a place for you. 
(John 14:2.) 

It is appointed unto men once 
to die, but after this the judg- 
ment. (Heb. 9:27.) 

Abhor that which is evil. 
(Rom. 12:9.) 



MISLED BY ERRONEOUS VIEWS 167 

It is a sense of sin, and not a What is a man profited, if he 

sinful soul, which is lost. (p. shall gain the whole world and 

311.) lose his own soul? (Matt. 16 :26.) 

Because soul is immortal, soul The soul that sinneth, it shall 

cannot sin. (p. 468.) die. (Ezek. 18:4.) 

The second appearance of Jesus I will come again. (John 14 :3.) 

is unquestionably the spiritual ad- This same Jesus, which is taken 

vent of the advancing idea of up from you into heaven, shall so 

God in Christian Science. ("Auto- come in like manner as ye have 

biography," p. 96.) seen him go into heaven. (Acts 



Dealing Specifically with the Christian Scientist. 

(1) Christian Science virtually, indeed really ^ denies 
the personality of God. 

It is true that its terms denying the personality of 
God are somewhat ambiguous, but in their final analy- 
sis they deny it. In commenting on 1 Tim. 2:3, 4, 
which reads as follows : 

For this is good and acceptable in the sight of God 
our Saviour ; who will have all men to be saved, and 
to come unto the knowledge of the truth. 

Christian Science says: "That which will have all 
men to be saved is principle, spirit, not person." It 
is considered by Christian Science authorities that no 
one can become an adept in that science, as a healer and 
teacher, without absolutely relinquishing the idea of 
a divine personality. Christian Science is, therefore, 
really pantheistic. It speaks of "the absolute allness 
of God"; God is good, good is God, truth is God, love 
is God. According to this, the answer of Christian 
Science to the question, "What is God?" is as follows: 
"God is not a person ; God is mind or principle." 

The Christian worker must show from the Scriptures 
that this idea of God is a false one. In the Bible, 
God is presented as a living God, who sees, who feels, 
has intelligence and power; who acts in behalf of His 
children, and who, by His providence, guides and con- 
trols in the affairs of men. The following passages 
may be used to set forth this truth: 



168 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNIWa 

Acts 14 :15 : 

And saying, Sirs, why do ye these things? We also 
are men of like passions with you, and preach unto you 
that ye should turn from these vanities unto the living 
God, which made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and all 
things that are therein. 

Also 1 Thess. 1 :9 : 

For they themselves shew of us what manner of enter- 
ing in we had unto you, and how ye turned to God from 
idols to serve the living and true God. 

See also Psalms 94:9, 10; Jer. 10:10-16. 

(2) Christian Science denies the true doctrine of 
Christ. 

(a) It denies His incarnation by saying that "the 
conception of Jesus was spiritual" — an idea, not a 
person, conceived in the mind of the virgin whom she 
called Jesus." 

The Bible distinctly contradicts this statement. 

Luke 1 :35 : 

And the angel answered and said unto her. The Holy 
Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the 
Highest shall overshadow thee : therefore also that holy 
thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the 
Son of God. 

Indeed 1 John 4 :l-3 especially emphasizes the de- 
nial of the true person of Christ as a mark of the 
antichrist : 

Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits 
whether they are of God : because many false prophets 
are gone out into the world. 

Hereby know ye the Spirit of God : Every spirit that 
confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is 
of God. 

And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ 
is come in the flesh is not of God : and this is that 
spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it 
should come ; and even now already is it in the world. 

In Christian Science, "Jesus" and "Christ" are sepa- 
rated. "Christ" is supposed to be something of a 
special anointing which came upon Jesus at His bap- 
tism and left Him at the cross. This is flatly con- 
tradicted by Scripture: 



MISLED BY ERRONEOUS VIEWS 169 

1 John 5:6-8: 

This is he that came by water and blood, even Jesus 
Christ ; not by water only, but by water and blood. 
And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the 
Spirit is truth. 

For there are three that bear record in heaven, the 
Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost : and these three 
are one. 

And there are three that bear witness in earth, the 
spirit, and the water, and the blood : and these three 
agree in one. 

(b) Christian Science denies the sacrificial effect of 
Christ's death. Indeed, it practically denies the death 
of Christ altogether. Says Mrs. Eddy: "Jesus Christ 
did not perform many wonderful works until they saw 
Him after the crucifixion, and learned that He had not 
died ; He was merely fainting when pitying hands took 
Him down from the cross; His disciples believed Jesus 
dead when He was hidden in the sepulchre whereas He 
was alive." 

This, of course, is contrary to the teaching of Scrip- 
ture : 

1 Cor. 15 :l-4 : 

Moreover, brethren, I declare unto you the gospel which 
I preached unto you, which also ye have received, and 
wherein ye stand ; 

By which also ye are saved, if ye keep in memory what 
I preached unto you, unless ye have believed in vain. 

For I delivered unto you first of all that which I 
also received, how that Christ died for our sins ac- 
cording to the Scriptures ; 

And that he was buried, and that he rose again the 
third day according to the Scriptures. 

Also John 19 :30-35 : 

When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he 
said. It is finished : and he bowed his head, and gave 
up the ghost. 

The Jews therefore, because it was the preparation, 
that the bodies should not remain upon the cross on 
the sabbath day, (for that sabbath day was a high day,) 
besought Pilate that their legs might be broken, and 
that they might be taken away. 

Then came the soldiers, and brake the legs of the 
first, and of the other which was crucified with him. 

But when they came to Jesus, and saw that he was 
dead already, they brake not his legs : 

But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, 
and forttiwith came there out blood and water. 



170 PERSONAL SOUL-WIXXIXG 

And he that saw it bare record, and his record is 
true : and he knoweth that he saith true, that ye 

might believe. 

And Rom. 8 :34 ; U :15 ; 2 Cor. 5 :U ; 1 Thess. 4 :14 ; 
Rom. 6 :1-10. 

(c) Christian Science denies the deify of ChriM. 

Mrs. Eddv says, "Jesus was not God's son in any 
other sense than as every man is God's son." 

This virtuallv makes no distinction between the 
divinity of Christ and the divinity of all men, whereas 
the Scriptures distinctly teaches that Jesus Christ was 
the Son of God. in a unique sense — a sense which can- 
not be predicated of any mere human being. There 
never was a time when Jesus Christ was not the Son 
of God. As a child He was 1)0)11, but as a Son He was 
never born, but give)i ( Isa. 9:6). We, the sons of men, 
are the sons of God in a certain sense by creation, but 
there is another and a higher sense in which a man 
becomes a son of God the moment he believes in the 
Lord Jesus Christ. See the following passages : 

John 1 :18 : 

No man hath seen God at any time : the only begotten 
Son. which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath 
declared him. 

Matt. 3 :17 : 

And lo a voice from heaven, saying. This is my 
beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. 

Read carefully Matt. 21:33-46. See John 1:12, 13; 
also Gal. 3:26. ^ 

(3) Christian Science denies the true doctrine of 
sin. 

Christian Science says: ^'Belief in sin is an error; 
in reality, there is no evil ; the soul cannot sin ; sin 
is not real : sin is an illusion." Through the denial 
of error [instead of through His stripes] we are healed. 
In the Lord's Prayer as used by them, the phrases 
''forgive us our debts,'' and ^'deliver us from evil" are 
carefully expunged. That this is contrary to the teach- 



MISLED BY ERRONEOUS VIEWS 171 

ing of the Scriptures is evident from a study of the 
following references : 

Eom. 5:12: 

Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into tlie world, 
and death by sin ; and so death passed upon all men, 
for that all have sinned. 

Ezek. 18 :4 : 

Behold, all souls are mine ; as the soul of the father, 
so also the soul of the son is mine ; the soul that sin- 
neth, it shall die. 

See also Jas. 1 :15, and John 8 :21-24. 

The Scriptures clearly teach us that Jesus Christ 
came into the world to die for sin. If there be no such 
thing as sin in the world, then Jesus Christ died for a 
tremendous unreality. 

9. "God is too good to condemn any one." 

You may ask the question to what we are indebted 
for our conception of the character of God — is it not 
to the Bible? On what do we build our hope of the 
future — is it not on the Bible? What picture of God, 
therefore, does the Bible present ? Here is the question 
the worker should ask. It is true that the Bible pre- 
sents God as love (1 John 4:8) ; it also presents Him 
as "a consuming fire" (Heb. 12:29). In 2 Peter 3:9 
God is set forth as both loving and just. 

(a) Show the purpose of God's goodness and the 
danger of abusing it. 

This may be done by the use of Romans 2 :4, 5 : 

Or despisest thou the riches of his goodness and for- 
bearance and longsuffering ; not knowing that the good- 
ness of God leadeth thee to repentance? 

But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasurest 
up unto thyself wrath against the day of wrath and 
revelation of the righteous judgment of God. 

The context of this passage shows us that the Jews 
counted themselves within the pale of God's mercy, 



172 PEBSOXAL SOUL-WIXXIXG 

wMle the Gentiles were regarded by them as ontside of 
this mercT. and that even though the Jews were incon- 
sistent in life, they would be saved because they were 
within the pale of God's mercy. The apostle shows 
them that their reliance on God's tolerance to suspend 
the rule of His administration in their case is virtual 
contempt. They are thereby simply storing up to 
themselves wrath because of their abuse of God's mercy. 

Komans 2 A. 5 : 

Or despisest thon the riches of Bis goodness and for- 
bearance" and longsuEering ; not knowing rhat the good- 
ness of God leadeth thee to repentance? 

But after thy hardness and impenitent heart treasnrest 
np unto thyself wrath astiinst the day of wrath and 
reyelation of the righteous judgment of God. 

Show them from these verses the purpose of God's 
goodness — to lea^ them to repentance. 

Ezek. 33 .11 and 2 Peter 3 :9-ll teach us. that, while 
God longs to have us saved, yet if we do not turn from 
our sins, judgment, though temporarily suspended, will 
finally fall upon us. 

(bj It irill 1)6 iceU to slioic the inquirer that the 
revelation of God ice possess in the Bible, distinctly de- 
clares that the goodness of God does not prohibit His 
justice being executed. For this purpose use 

2 Peter 2 :4-6 : 

For if God spared not the angels that sinned, bnt 
cast them down ro hell, and delivered them into chains 
of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment ; 

And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the 
eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in 
the flood noon the world of the ungodly : 

And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into 
ashes, condemned them with an overthrow, making them 
an ensample unto those that after should Uve ungodly. 

These verses not only show what God did do. but 
also what God will do. Indeed, we are told that what 
He did to the Antediluvians was an ensample to the 
ungodly. 

(c) Finally, read Matthew 25:3146. 



MISLED BY ERRONEOUS VIEWS 173 

6. The Millennial Dawnist. 

We here set forth a general view of the doctrines of 
this phase of religious belief, and some brief sugges- 
tions as to how to answer them. 

i. Millennial Dawnism denies the deity and the hu- 
manity of J.esus Christ. 

Its faith may be expressed somewhat in this manner: 
Jesus Christ was not always divine ; He was a created 
being of the very highest order; a god, but not God; 
He was called God only in an inferior and derived 
sense; He is never called Jehovah anywhere in the 
Scriptures, nor does He declare Himself to be God; 
like Adam, He was merely a man, untainted and sinless 
— but only a man, and consequently mortal. His death 
was the death of a mere man. His human nature had 
to be consecrated to death before He could receive even 
the pledge of the divine nature. Not until He had 
actually sacrificed the human nature even unto death 
did He become partaker of the divine nature, and 
since His resurrection He is what He never was before, 
that is, a God. Only in this sense do the Millennial 
Dawnists acknowledge Christ as divine. 

Christ's humanity is denied. Jesus Christ is no 
longer a man. At the resurrection His body evaporated 
into gases, or is preserved by God as a memorial in 
some secluded part of the universe. The body of Jesus 
Christ was not raised at the resurrection. What was 
raised was an entirely new creation, and not the body 
which had been put in the tomb. When Christ died 
His entire humanity died with Him, and was not raised 
again. 

How TO Meet This False Belief. 

(a) Show that the Scriptures assert the real deity of 
Christ. 



174 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

John 1 :1 : 

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with 
God, and the Word was God. 

This verse teaches thai: the Word was not from, but 
in the beginning; that the Word was God, not a God. 
If the objection is made that the "Word" here refers to 
spoken utterances and not to Jesus Christ, the 14th 
verse, clearly indicates that the "Word" in verse 1 is 
the incarnate Word. 

Col. 1:16, 17: 

For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, 
and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they 
be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers ; all 
things were created by him, and for him : 

And he is before all things, and by him all things con- 
sist. 

These verses show that Jesus Christ was not a created 
being, but the Creator of all existing beings. In other 
words, the Christ of Colossians 1 is the God of Genesis 
1. Millennial Dawnism is a revival of Gnosticism with 
which Paul deals so fully in Colossians. 

That the fulness of the Godhead dwelt bodily in 
Christ, both before and during His incarnation, is evi- 
denced from Colossians 2 :9. 

A comparison of John 8 :58 with Exodus 3 :13 shows 
that we may legitimately say that Christ applied the 
name Jehovah to Himself. In John 12 :38-41 it is dis- 
tinctly stated that the glory of Jehovah which Israel 
saw was the glory of the Christ of the New Testament. 

Further, a comparison of 1 Cor. 2 :11 with John 1 :18, 
shows clearly that no mere human being could reveal 
God. 

(a) Shoio that the Scriptures assert the real human- 
ity of Christ. 

The Millennial Dawnist denies the humanity of 
Christ. In contradistinction to this belief, the Apostle 



MISLED BY ERRONEOUS VIEWS 175 

Paul clearly and distinctly affirms the humanity of 
Christ in 1 Tim. 2 :5 : 

For there is one God, and one mediator between God 
and men, the man Christ Jesus ; 

Christ himself asserts the reality of His resurrec- 
tion body, and indeed its identity, with the body He 
had before His resurrection : 

Luke 24:39: 

Behold my hands and my feet, that it is I myself : 
handle me, and see ; for a spirit hath not flesh and bones, 
as ye see me have. 

It was the Son of Man whom Stephen saw in his 
dying vision (Acts 7:56). It is the same Christ of 
whose identity the disciples were assured (Luke 
24:39), and whose person Thomas was allowed to 
scrutinize and handle (John 20 :24-29), whom the angels 
announced is coming again personally and visibly 
(Acts 1:11). 

2. Millennial Dawnism denies the true Scriptural 

teaching of the Holy Spirit. 

The following is taken from Mr. RusselPs work. The 
Atonement^ pages 165-166 : ''And equally consistent is 
the Scriptural teaching regarding the Holy Spirit, 
that it is not another God, but the spirit, influence, or 
power exercised by the one God, our Father. The 
Three-in-One doctrine suits well the dark ages." 

(a) The Scripture clearly teaches hoth the personal- 
ity and deity of the Holy Spirit. 

In John 16 :13, 14, the personal pronoun ''he" is seven 
times used of the Holy Ghost. It is true that in Rom. 
8:16 the neuter pronoun "itself" is used, but the Re- 
vised Version properly translates the word "himself." 

Personal acts are ascribed to the Holy Spirit: He 
speaks ; He searches the deep things of God ; He makes 
intercession; He takes the place of a person, the Lord 



176 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

Jesus Christ (Rev. 2:7; 1 Cor. 2:10; Rom. 8:26; John 
14:16). He may be lied against and blasphemed (Acts 
5:3; Matt. 12:31, 32). 

If the Holy Spirit were not a divine person it wonld 
hardly seem right to use His name as being of equal 
importance and majesty with that of the Father and Son, 
as is done in the baptism formula (Matt. 28:19), and 
the Apostolic benediction (2 Cor. 13:14). 

3. Millennial Dawnism telieves in probation after 
death. 

It declares that the impenitent will have a second op- 
portunity to accept the Gospel. "The ransom for all, 
given by the man, Christ Jesus, does not guarantee or 
give everlasting life or blessing to every man, but it 
does guarantee to every man another trial for life ever- 
lasting. The restoration to perfect human nature will 
be accomplished gradually during the millennial age — 
^the time of restitution.' " 

The parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus (Luke 
16:19-31) distinctly teaches us that the period of 
human probation ends at death, and that the state in 
which death finds a man is the state in which he shall 
remain during all eternity. 

Compare also the following passages : Revelation 
22:11, which teaches that as death and the judgment 
finds a man, so he will remain throughout all eternity ; 
2 Corinthians 6 :2, which distinctly states that "Now is 
the day of salvation"; Hebrews 2:3, which shows us 
that there is no escape in the future for any rejection of 
the Gospel in this life ; John 5 :28, 29, clearly teach that 
the wicked are raised not for the purpose of being given 
a second chance, but for the purpose of receiving their 
judgment of condemnation. 



THE OBSTINATE 



CHAPTER XIV. 



X. THE OBSTINATE. 

THERE are some people who, like Pharaoh of old, 
sin against God with a high hand and a hard 
face. They say : ^'Who is the Lord, that I should serve 
and obey Him? Away with you, I don't want to hear 
about God and your religion/^ They have made up 
their minds firmly to pursue an evil course. Like Ahab 
of old, they have determined not to serve God, and, 
seemingly, no quality of human effort on the part of the 
most earnest Christian has the slightest influence in 
turning them from their evil course. 

This class of people may be recognized by the follow- 
ing excuses : 

!• "I don't want yon to talk to me.'* 

The duty of the Christian worker is to talk to them 
anyway. We must not shirk our duty of speaking 
to and warning them against the error of their 
ways. The following passages are helpful in dealing 
with this class: 

Jer. 1 :17 : 

Thou therefore gird up thy loins, and arise, and speak 
unto them all that I command thee : be not dismayed at 
their faces, lest I confound thee before them. 

Ezek. 3 :11 : 

And go, get thee to them of the captivity, unto the 
children of thy people, and speak unto them, and tell 
them, Thus saith the Lord God ; whether they will hear, 
or whether they will forbear. 

2 Cor. 2 :15-17 : 

For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them 
that are saved, and in them that perish : 

179 



180 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

To the one we are the savour of death unto death , 
and to the other the savour of life unto life. And who 
is sufficient for these things? 

For we are not as many, which corrupt the word of 
God : but as of sincerity, but as of God, in the sight 
of God speak we in Christ. 

Show them the punishment for such stout obsti- 
nacy; that such imperiousness cannot escape judgment. 

Psa. 81 :12 : 

So I gave them up unto their own hearts' lust : and 
they walked in their own counsels. 

Eccl. 11:9; Kom. 2:8, 9. 
Rom. 1 :21-25 : 

Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him 
not as God, neither were thankful ; but became vain in 
their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. 

Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, 

And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into 
an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, 
and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. 

Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanliness, 
through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonor their 
own bodies between themselves : 

Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped 
and served the creature more than the Creator, who is 
blessed for ever. Amen. 

Rev. 22 :11 : 

He that is unjust, let him be unjust still : and he 
which is filthy, let him be filthy still : and he that is 
righteous, let him be righteous still : and he that is 
holy, let him be holy still. 

2. **I want to haye my own way." 

Well, that is their prerogative ; but show them what 
God thinks about this unreasonable desire: 

Prov. 14:12: 

There is a way which seemeth right unto a man ; but 
the end thereof are the ways of death. 

Prov. 12 :15 : 

The way of a fool is right in his own eyes : but he 
that hearkeneth unto counsel is wise. 



THE OBSTINATE 181 



Prov. 30 :12 



There is a generation ttiat are pure in their own eyes, 
and yet is not washed from their filthiness. 

Matt. 7 :13, 14 : 

Enter ye in at the strait gate : for wide is the gate, and 
broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many, 
there be which go in thereat : 

Because strait is the gate, and narrow is the way, 
which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it. 

1 Pet. 4 :17, 18 : 

For the time is come that judgment must begin at 
the house of God : and if it first begin at us, what shall 
the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God? 

And if the righteous scarcely be saved, where shall 
the ungodly and the sinner appear? 

3. **I haye made np my mind to haye a good time in this 
• world, and I don't care about tlie world to come." 

(a) Show the folly of this course: 
Luke 16 :25 : 

But Abraham said. Son, remember that thou in thy 
lifetime receivedst thy good things, and likewise Lazarus 
evil things : but now he is comforted, and thou art tor- 
mented. 

Luke 12 :15 : 

And he said unto them, Take heed, and beware of covet- 
ousness : for a man's life consisteth not in the abun- 
dance of the things which he possesseth. 

Luke 12 :19-21 : 

And J will say to my soul. Soul, thou hast much 
goods laid up for many years ; take thine ease, eat, 
drink, and be merry. 

But God said unto him, Thou fool, this night thy soul 
shall be required of thee : then whose shall those things 
be, which thou hast provided? 

So is he that layeth up treasure for himself, and is 
not rich toward God. 

1 Cor. 15 :32, 34 : 

If after the manner of men I have fought with beasts 
at Ephesus, what advantageth it me, if the dead rise not? 
let us eat and drink ; for tomorrow we die. 

Awake to righteousness, and sin not ; for some have 
not the knowledge of God : I speak this to your shame. 



182 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

(h) Show that God will judge them for these things, 
Eccl. 11 :9 : 

Rejoice, O young man, in thy youth ; and let thy heart 
cheer thee in the days of thy youth, and walk in the 
ways of thine heart, and in the sight of thine eyes : but 
know thou, that for all these things God will bring 
thee into judgment. 

2 Pet. 2 :12 : 

But these, as natural brute beasts made to be taken and 
destroyed, speak evil of the things that they under- 
stand not ; and shall utterly perish in their own cor- 
ruption. 

See also Rom. 2 :5-ll. 



THE SKEPTIC 



CHAPTER XV. 

XI. THE SKEPTIC. 

THE Christian worker who is anxious for the pro- 
mulgation of God's kingdom on earth, must equip 
himself to meet those forms of unbelief so prevalent in 
our day. Mere arguments, elaborately stated and elo- 
quently discussed, cannot meet this great need of turn- 
ing the night of infidelity into the day of Christian 
light. The Word of God alone, as used by the Holy 
Spirit, can turn our darkness into light, and our unbe- 
lief into faith. Our arguments should not be "carnal'' 
but "spiritual." 

There are two classes of skeptics — the insincere, and 
the serious-minded. In dealing with them, it is well 
to find out by asking questions to which class they 
belong. 

The Insincere Skeptic. 

In dealing with the insincere skeptic, you may use 
the following method : 

(a) Show the causae of his skepticism. 
This may be done by the use of: 

Rom. 1 :25, 28 : 

Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and wor- 
shipped and served the creature more than the Creator, 
who is blessed forever. 

And even as they did not like to retain God in their 
knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, 
to do those things which are not convenient. 

These verses reveal the real cause of skepticism. 
At its root, its cause is moral rather than intellectual. 
It would be well to read verses 19-28 entire to the in- 

185 



186 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

quirer. Seek to find out if there is not some sin in his 
life that is the cause of his skepticism. 

Also John 8:47: 

He that is of God heareth God's words : ye therefore 
hear them not, because ye are not of God. 

(1)) Show the fatal consequenaes of such skepticism, 
2 Thess. 2 :10, 12 : 

And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them 
that perish ; because they received not the love of the 
truth, that they might be saved. 
^ That they all might be damned who believed not the 

truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness. 

Also 2 Thess. 1 :7-9. 

The Earnest-minded Skeptic. 

Some skeptics claim to be sincere in their skepticism. 
They profess to desire to believe, but find themselves un- 
able to do so. This class of skeptics may express them- 
selves in the following way : 

**I cannot belieye." 

Ask them just what they think "believing" is. Show 
them that the faith which they are called upon to exer- 
cise in order to be saved is of the same nature as that 
which they are called upon to use, and indeed, are 
nsing, daily in business, social and domestic life — the 
^ only difference being in the object of that faith. To 
believe in a person is to accept what that person says 
about himself or anything else, as being true, and to 
relate oneself to him as one who thus believes in him. 
The man in business makes an engagement with you to 
meet you at a certain time and place. The fact that 
you meet him at that appointed time and place is an 
evidence of your belief in him and his word. That is 
faith in everyday life. Now transfer that to the higher 
— the spiritual realm. God says certain things con- 



THE SKEPTIC 187 

cerning His relation to men and their salvation. For 
example, God says that all men have sinned (1 John 
1:8-10), and are, therefore, under wrath and condem- 
nation (John 3:18, 19, 36) ; but that He so loved us, 
sinful though we were and are, that He gave his Son 
to die for us (Rom. 5:6-8), in order that the wrath 
and penalty due to our sin might fall on Christ, our 
sinless substitute, and not on us (Gal. 3:13; 2 Cor. 
5:21; 1 Peter 2:24); and, therefore, if any man will 
believe God's testimony concerning these things (1 
John 5 :9-12), he has everlasting life and shall not come 
into condemnation (John 5:24). If we receive the 
witness of men (1 John 5:9, 10) — and we do, daily — 
why should we not receive the witness of God? 

(a) The way to find out whether or not a thing is 
true and worthy of one's acceptance is to put this thing 
to the test. So we are told in 

John 7:17: 

If any man will do his will, he shall know of the 
doctrine, whether it be of God, or whether I speak of 
myself. 

Notice how this verse reads, especially in the Revised 
Version. We get to know the truth of what God says 
by obedience to that truth. Ordinarily we seek to 
find out whether a thing is true or not before we do 
it, and if we are persuaded that it is true, we then 
do it. But God's ways are not our ways. God tells 
us to obey the doctrine, to do His will, and in the 
doing of it we shall discover the truth of it. We do 
first, then we know. 

It is well, therefore, to ask the inquirer if he will 
do the things God asks him to do. For example, we 
are told in the Bible that "God is, and that He is a re- 
warder of them that diligently seek Him" (Heb. 11 :6) ; 
that He is a prayer-hearing and prayer-answering God, 
one who is nigh unto all those that call upon Him in 



^ 



188 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

truth (Psa. 145:18); that He gives assurance, peace 
^ and joy to those that keep His commandments (isa. 
32:17; John 14:27; John 1:4). Now, the question for 
the inquirer to settle is, whether or not he will live 
his life as in the presence of God, call upon Him fer- 
vently and sincerely in prayer, and lead a life that is 
lived in obedience to God's known commands. If so, 
this shows that he is a sincere seeker after truth, for 
he is willing to follow all the light that he can get. If 
he is not willing to do this, he does not deserve to be 
classed among the earnest-minded skeptics. 

(h) It will 6e well to show him the conditions of 
salvation as laid down in the Bible. 

This may be done by referring to Chapter VI. 

Some Skeptical Objections. 
1. **I don't Ibelieye in the existence of God." 

The Bible does not undertake to prove the existence 
of God. It asserts it; it takes it for granted. The 
sacred volume introduces itself to us with the sublime 
words, "In the beginning God created the heaven and 
the earth." (Gen. 1:1.) This sublime statement at 
once contradicts Pantheism, which believes that God 
is the universe, and the universe is God. It contra- 
dicts the unity of matter, and asserts the independ- 
ency of God over matter and His separateness from it. 

But while the Bible nowhere undertakes to prove the 
existence of God — always, and everywhere taking it for 
granted — ^yet it leaves us not without indications and 
evidences of the fact that there is, and always has 
been, and ever will be, a living, intelligent, personal 
Being whom we adore and worship as God. 

^'In a musical instrument, when we observe divers 
stops meet in harmony, we conclude that some skillful 
musician tuned them. When we see thousands of men 
in a field, marshaled under several colors, all yielding 



THE SKEPTIC 189 

exact obedience, we infer that there is a general, whose 
command they are all subject to. In a watch, when 
we take notice of great and small wheels, all so fitted 
as to concur in an orderly motion, we acknowledge 
the skill of an artificer. When we come into a print- 
ing office, and see a great number of different letters 
so ordered as to make a book, it is evident that there 
is a composer, by whose art they have been brought 
into such a frame. When we behold a fair building, 
we conclude it had an architect; a stately ship, well- 
rigged, and safely conducted to the port, that it hath 
a pilot. So here the visible world is such an instru- 
ment, army, watch, book, building, ship, as undeniably 
argueth a God, who was and is the tuner, general, and 
artificer, the composer, architect, and pilot of it.'' 
With the above thought in view, see 

Kom. 1 :19-22 : 

Because that which may be known of God is manifest 
in them ; for God hath shewed it unto them. 

For the invisible things of him from the creation of 
the world are clearly seen, being understood by the /^-*- 

things that are made, even his eternal power and God- C^*^ 

head ; so that they are without excuse. 

Psalm 8 :1, 3 : 

O Lord our Lord, how excellent is thy name In all 
the earth! who hast set thy glory above the heavens. 

When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, 
the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained. 

Psalm 33:6: 

By the word of the Lord were the heavens made; and |/^ 

all the host of them by the breath of his mouth. 

No man can be counted really wise (Psa. 14:1) who, 
in the face of such evidences as these, doubts the exist- 
ence of an all-wise, all-ruling, personal God. 

2. "I don't belieye in future eternal punishment." 

The argument commonly used against future pun- 
ishment is the incompatibility of God's love with such 



190 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

a doctrine. We must not let our sympathy run away 
with our judgment, however. We must not forget that, 
while the Bible asserts that God is "love," it also tells 
us that God is "just." We have no more authority for 
believing the one than the other. Both statements are 
equally clear and emphatic. Love is not an effeminate 
tenderness — a weak, womanish sympathy, that cannot 
punish the disobedient. There was a time when the 
terror of the law was preached too much ; now the pen- 
dulum has Swung over to the other extreme — too much 
love. 

The question: Is there a hell? resolves itself into 
this: Is there a moral Governor of the world? Is 
there a moral law? Is there such a thing as sin? For, 
if there be, then there is such a thing as punishment 
for sin. There is sin, and there is punishment for sin 
which we daily witness. But there is not for all 
sin such a reckoning in this world as meets the 
claims of righteousness and justice. Do we not daily 
see evil doings pass undetected, and many bad men 
pass unpunished? See how often the righteous suffer 
and the wicked flourish. When we take a deliberate 
view of these things we are led to exclaim, "Wherefore 
do the wicked live, become old, yea, are mighty in 
power?" Is there no reward for the righteous? Is 
there no punishment for the workers of iniquity? Is 
there no God that judgeth in the earth? And, indeed, 
were there no retribution beyond the limits of the pres- 
ent life, we should be necessarily obliged to admit one 
or the other of the following conclusions : Either that 
no moral Governor of the world exists, or that justice 
and judgment are not the habitation of His throne. 

See the following passages : 

Luke 16 :23-26 : 

And in hell he lifted up his eyes, being in torments, and 
seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. 



THE SKEPTIC 191 

And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy 
on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip 
of his finger in water, and cooi my tongue ; for I am 
tormented in this flame. 

But Abraham said, Son, remember that thou in thy 
lifetime receivedst thy good things, and lilcewise Lazarus 
evil things : but now he is comforted, and thou art 
tormented. 

And beside all this, between us and you there is a 
great gulf fixed : so that they which would pass from 
hence to you cannot ; neither can they pass to us, that 
would come from thence. 

Luke 12:5: ^ 

But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear : Pear 
him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast Into 
hell ; yea, I say unto you, Fear him. 

Matt. 25:41, 46: 

Then shall he say also unto them on the left hand, 
Depart from me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, pre- 
pared for the devil and his angels : 

And these shall go away into everlasting punishment : 
but the righteous into life eternal. 

Mark 9 :43, 44 : 

And if thy hand offend thee, cut it off: it is better 
for thee to enter into life maimed, than having two 
hands to go into hell, into the fire that never shall be 
quenched : 

Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not 
quenched. 

8. "I don't belieye in the inspiration of the Bible." 

Let us not fear that the unbelief of men in this sacred 
volume will ultimately cause its overthrow. Heaven 
and earth may pass away, but one jot or tittle of God's 
Word shall never pass away till all be fulfilled. (Matt. 
5:18.) 

Let us show them: 

(a) That their unbelief does not make God^s Word 
void. 

Rom. 3 :3, 4 : 

For what if some did not believe? shall their unbelief 
make the faith of God without effect? 

God forbid : yea, let God be true, but every man a 
liar ; as it is written, That thou mightest be justified in 
thy sayings, and mightest overcome when thou art 
judged. 



192 PERSONAL SOUL-WINNING 

fb) The testimony of the Scriptures to their inspira- 
tion. 

2 Tim. 3 :16 : 

All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is 
U^ profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for 

instruction in righteousness : 

See, also, 2 Peter 2:19-21; 1 Thess. 2:13; 2 Sam. 
23 :2 ; Heb. 4 :12 ; Jer. 23 :27, 28. 

Compare also Psalm 119, and see how often David 
calls the Scriptures God's "Word," "law/' "statute," 

"testimonies," etc. 

4. "I do not belieTc in the deity of Chrisf* 
See under "The Unitarian," page 142. 



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